


Mists Of The Calla

by fairyminseok



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Character Death, Elves, High Fantasy, M/M, Magic, Prophecy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-18
Updated: 2015-06-05
Packaged: 2018-04-03 00:44:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 55,259
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4080085
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fairyminseok/pseuds/fairyminseok
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Through the fog, and across a vast unknown land, a failed knight finds his purpose, a snobby prince learns to love, and the enemy of one’s enemy, is truly a friend after all.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> \--- Heavily edited from the original BAE version. Please read here, rather than the exchange posting.---

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hayd-roon  
> Gay-ill-go-rn

**Warning(s):** multiple character deaths, gore, violence, horror and supernatural elements, scientifically inaccurate magical mist, descriptions of blood, necromancy, angst, broken pairing, unhealthy friendships, magical elements, medical inaccuracy due to magically healing injuries, Byun Baekhyun, horrible self editing 

[ playlist ](http://8tracks.com/chanbaekexchange/mists-of-the-calla)

 

 

 

 

Mists Of The Calla

  
♔; Honour; : high respect; esteem. : regard with great respect. 

 

\---  3 hours North of Calladron.  \----

 

“My lords, you have risen.”

The voice is quiet and tense, but soft. It echoes slightly against the walls of the cave, tinged with a layer of magic permeating the air with a stench stronger than any this place has ever encountered.

The cave is dark, walls dripping with a substance that isn't quite water, isn't quite a proper liquid at all, seeping through the rock. It lands with soft splashes onto the ground where a man can be seen, sitting cross legged and stony faced; eyes narrowing in concentration and mouth set in a thin line.

The man is average height with normally bright eyes, a rich black cloak, and fading pink hair that falls into his face as he focuses on completing his task; on the flickering candles and cowhide mat in front of him, and not the shadowy beings standing in front of him. They're tall, imposing, faces hidden in the shadows.

 

Watching him.

 

He tries not to look at them, tries not to exhibit any kind of fear, any kind of apprehension. To show weakness in front of such ancient beings is to cause one's untimely death, and the man wishes to live, now and eternally.

One of the shadowy beings glides forward, wisps of black fog trailing behind it like the train of a dress, and the man can see it now, illuminated by the sacred candles. The being is beautiful, perfectly sculpted and ethereal. The man, still seated on the mat, is taken aback, nearly to the verge of tears just upon witnessing the creature, and his curiosity gets the better of him as he cranes his neck to try and see the others.

An act of utmost disrespect.

 

_Stand at attention, never look away, don't even blink, or one may lose what little faith one has gained in these beings._

 

The man realizes his mistake a second too late, and his eyes dart back to the being. He bows low to the ground, hasty and sloppy, apologies stuttering forth.

"Apologies for my carelessness, my Lord. I became curious upon seeing the beauty of your race. Spare me."

 

Silence.

 

The man stays crouched to the ground, not daring to raise his head, body shaking with fear, breath coming out harshly as he waits for the being to end his life, to punish him maybe.

But nothing happens, and the man grows brave once more, slowly lifting himself up to gaze at the being again. He's met with not beauty, not grace, but a face filled with grotesque teeth, a grin bigger than that of the cats of the Calla, and sharp lidded eyes.

"You sought immortality for your deeds, and yet you do not respect the first rule of the Amphaerie." The being hisses, tongue dragging across gleaming fangs, and the man shuffles backwards, pale hair matted against his forehead as he sweats.

"Yet you have brought us life, brought us back to the one place we never thought we'd return, and for that yes, we are grateful." The being, the great Amphaerie Lord of times past, times forgotten, rises to his full height, horrendous grin still in place, looming over the man.

"Lee Hongbin, Necromancer of the Thelgard." A second voice, melodious and accented joins the first, as the two other beings glide forward, both enveloped in a thin layer of shadow, of creeping dark fog, and the man stands to his feet, stepping backwards in fear, a feeling of terror overcoming him as he breaks another rule.

"Ah, breaking more rules." A third voice says, this one quieter, almost pleasant as it rolls off the tongue of the Amphaerie Lord. Hongbin turns to run now, escape the only thing on his mind, too terrified for regret, too terrified to even think of turning back, of facing the very beings he's brought back to life.

 

Terror; the last emotion Hongbin feels before his death, before the Amphaerie's cold hands tear the skin right from his body, tossing him aside along with the candles. One must respect an Amphaerie, or one shall face death. A human with no respect, who cannot follow even the simplest rules laid out for him does not deserve the immortality they have promised.

A feral kind of smile breaks out on the third's face as it clasps it's hands together with glee, bringing a clawed finger to it's face to lick the sorcerer's blood from them, humming with pleasure at the taste.

The beings move swiftly, and so does the mist, trailing behind them and in front of them. Thick and filled with an air of dread, causing the plants that have sprung up during centuries of abandonment to wilt.

The world is theirs for the taking.

 

 

☁

Calladron.

A great land of rolling hills and steep mountains, rushing rivers and vast plains. A land of diversity, of commerce, of close knit families, and rigid alliances; forged over years of hardship brought on by the past darkness. A land free of the rule of the Amphaerie -- the Necromancers of the Underworld -- for some hundred or so years.

A place where humans, elves, sprites and magic weave their lives together peacefully and gracefully, with minor disturbance. A utopia of sorts for the creatures that reside within the walls made from the Dropfell mountains; beyond them is a vast ocean leading to places unknown.

Home of the Calla, the Great Plains of the East, known for their wolves and beasts, dangerous but beautiful.

In the south lies the Elven kingdoms, Heiðrún, Leí, and Gælgorn, similar but different. Magical, graceful kinds, some tall and royal, others soft and natural, and some dark and mysterious. The ruling race, powerful, commanding, but kind.

In the West lies the Karhaerin City of Thelgard, home of the humans. Simple yet dignified, diverse and wonderful, with ships of steel forged by the sorcerers, ruled by the Empress Nana and her sisters Krystal and Jessica.

Just past the Elven Kingdoms lies a great forest, home of the elemental sprites, the imps of the woods, and the quiet dryads of the trees, a place full of wonder and magic that dances through the air and sings into the hearts of the inhabitants.

In the North lies the forgotten lands at the Edge of the Calla and past the marshlands of Kíló Hægrimenn. Home of the ruins of the force that once held the entire Calladron captive. Fallen towers that were once majestic pillars of power and dictation, now piles of rubble and blown away ash, with only insects left to scuttle across the stone.

Plagued by storms and darkness, encased in mist and the faint smell of copper, never trodden upon by human foot, Elven foot, or even the brave hooves of a Calla centaur. Barren wastelands, speaking past stories of death, sorrow and tragedy, once called home by the dominant Amphaerie and now left with nothing, and extinct and evil race.

Most inhabitants of Calladron are unaware of the Ruins of Amfi; most have not even set foot on the grass of the Calla or seen past the Marshlands. Most would not dare, fearing for their lives against the beasts of the Calla and the swamp hyenas; half dead and half alive, leaping from the bogs to drag humans and Elves alike under.

To go into the Marshlands, to venture across the Calla is something not even the bravest Heiðrún Knight would attempt, something perhaps not even the dumbest human, wanting to be a hero would try.

No one sees any reason really to cross the Calla and see what's beyond it. Most just assume it's another ocean, large and vast and uncross able, but most are just content with living in the peaceful calm that is Calladron.

In Gaelgorn however, there is a prophecy. Spoken by the oracle, an old and frail being wrapped in graying robes with graying hair, told to the Royal Court on a fresh spring day. Her voice, usually weak and rasping spills forth from her lips clear and deep.

The prophecy is foreseen as the law. foreseen as the truest of events, and it’s with a heavy heart of fear, these words of the Oracle, and the Gaelgorn code that a young prince is trained and ready, watching and waiting for the day when his time must come.

When it comes it’s swift, curling around the ankles of the prince and into the hearts of the Elves. He’s not quite ready, but no great evil ever waits for its enemy, and it’s with solid resolve and shaking hands that he readies his bow, sharpens his knives, and kisses the Queen goodbye.

_Gaelgorn code; To deflect ones destiny is to bring upon themselves certain death. There is no honour, for it is a lie, but there is also no respect of one defying the very rules of fate._

Heiðrún code; to honour yourself, and your fellow knights is to give back to the Earth, karma for karma; no debt must stay unpaid.

 

 

\---  **AA. 1272.**

\---  At the foot of the Dropfell Mountains  \----

 

Heiðrún Elves are known for being knightly, royal, condescending almost. High and mighty; a superior race hidden away at the foot of the Dropfell Mountains, setting out only when they felt it deemed necessary. Elegant and traditional, with an air about them that suggests superiority. To be a Heiðrún Knight is to be graceful, cunning and brave, for Elves are creatures of great power and prowess and need to uphold their reputation.

Chanyeol is none of these things. He's a Knight yes, and he's an Elf, also yes, but he's neither brave nor graceful, elegant nor cunning. He does have the typical Heiðrún height, body lean and legs long, hair unkempt and falling his face, with large bright eyes and a smile that made him popular back when he’d first gone through the training. That is to say, popular until he actually tried to do anything remotely impressive or Knightly. Chanyeol is, to put it short, clumsy. He really does try hard, but trying hard gets him nowhere except being the one sent out on the most ridiculously boring missions that they can find.

Currently he's stomping through some awful underbrush on his way to find out why the shrubs at the foot of one of the great mountains are dying, and this is really _not_ a job for a knight, more a job for some common village folk; a dwarve's job. Chanyeol curses under his breath and wipes the sweat from his brow where his hair has become unruly and matted. His frown only grows deeper when he realizes that he doesn't recognize the plants where he is.

_Fuck. Not again._

Chanyeol should be used to this by now -- the whole getting lost thing-- but he still finds himself panicking slightly when he can't recognize his surroundings, and he gulps nervously. For all he knows, he could be wandering straight into the nest of some awful giant spider, and Chanyeol _really_ doesn't like spiders.

Elves are usually good at killing spiders, especially Elven knights but Chanyeol can barely hit the targets with his bows. If he stays lost he's going to miss dinner, and Chanyeol _really_ loves dinner.

Chanyeol could call for a horse, and ride back quickly, but Chanyeol isn't that good at riding, and fears making his day worse by being thrown into a bog or something.

Chanyeol walks for about an hour before he truly gives up and sits himself in the grass, glancing around at the trees. They're large and unfamiliar, and he’s wondering just how he’s managed to get himself _this_ lost, when a shrill noise erupts the air, and Chanyeol shrieks, throwing himself into the grass in fear.

He may be a failure of a knight, but Chanyeol knows the sound of an Elven made arrow when he hears it, and he stays crouched down, eyes darting from side-to-side. Who in the hell is shooting at him and why?

Chanyeol hyperventilates a little, lost in a thought that, holy shit, a Gælgorn Elf has got him, and he’s definitely about to die.

The grass is cold underneath him, the air heavy, and that’s when Chanyeol notices the mist. Thick, suffocating and blinding, seeming to crawl across the ground and through the trees. All thoughts of other Elves gone from his mind, Chanyeol scrambles in the direction that he thinks is home, engulfed in the fog that seems to be creeping up his legs, wrapping around him like a living entity, and he nearly trips, whimpering when a figure appears in front of him, swiftly and silently.

“Don’t go into it. Go the other way.” The voice that breaks through the strangely silent air is unfamiliar and accented. Chanyeol recognizes the language but has never actually heard it spoken by a native speaker.  He freezes, staring straight ahead at the figure, trying to place a face to the sound.

When Chanyeol doesn’t move the figure darts forward, and grabs his wrist, tugging him backwards. Chanyeol recognizes his breed, and tries to wrench his arm from the creatures grip, but he’s weak, and the mist is starting to cloud his senses, infect his lungs.

The Gælgorn Elf drags him behind him, walking as quickly as one can with a gangly Elf behind them, but he doesn’t stop when he reaches the edge of the mist. Instead he speeds up, panting from the effort. He gives up after a while, spinning on his heel to face Chanyeol, looking disgusted and Chanyeol cringes back in fear.

"Will you at least fucking cooperate with me? The mist moves fast and you'll die if you keep resisting."

Chanyeol can see the Elf clearly now outside the mist, and he's a little startled by his beauty. He's nothing like the stories of old told to the Heiðrún elves about Gælgorn elves. They're depicted as grotesque, hunch-backed elves with glowing eyes and sharp teeth, but this Elf is nothing like that, with bright, sparkling eyes, golden hair and delicate, but strong hands. Chanyeol furrows his eyebrows together.

"You're not going to kill me?" Chanyeol croaks, throat dry. He swallows nervously, eyeing the Elf in front of him with less fear and more wariness. Something about his gorgeousness makes Chanyeol calm down, makes him want to trust him. He straightens up.

"If I wanted to kill you I would have done it back when you were whining at the shrubs. I need you."

"Need me for wha-"

"Later." The Elf snaps, eyes flashing dangerously. "No time right now."

He reaches for Chanyeol’s hand to continue dragging him, but Chanyeol yelps, yanking his hand back and motions for the Elf to walk. He’ll cooperate.

Chanyeol isn't even sure where they're walking, glancing around at the unfamiliar trees, the too-thick grass. Even as a knight, Chanyeol has never really gone far from the shelter of the mountain and he stares in wonder at his surroundings.

He doesn't have time to look properly though before the Elf is snapping at him to move. The mist is billowing, engulfing the tops of the trees, making everything behind them virtually disappear. Chanyeol doesn't know what the mist is, or what's inside it, but This Elf seems terrified by it, eyes darting back every few minutes.

It takes at least twenty minutes of fast paced walking before they reach this apparent destination and Chanyeol is breathing hard, not used to this amount of physical exertion. The Gælgorn Elf is standing in the middle of a clearing and the darkness of the cloud of fog is quickly surrounding them. He makes a noise Chanyeol hasn't heard anything utter before, and he suppresses a shiver. He's terrified to know what the Elf is doing, what or who he's calling to, and Chanyeol inches back away from him, glancing at the surrounding trunks, tall and intimidating.

He has nowhere to go, stuck between the strange singing of this elf or the supposedly deadly fog and he collapses into the ground, crossing his legs and watching. Chanyeol waits for something to happen, wondering when death will reach him, as this seems the only outcome of this whole ordeal.

Chanyeol could be at home having a nice dinner,  not trapped in the middle of the woods with some Elf that chants to trees. At least the mist seems to have stopped, hovering a bit into the trees, frozen as if by some outside force. Chanyeol becomes so lost in his thoughts staring at the white rim of the trunks, that he doesn't notice the Elf stop chanting. It isn't until he hears the sound of hooves that he snaps his head back around and sees two horses approaching the elf.

"Get on." The Elf orders, green eyes piercing through him, and Chanyeol knows he has no choice on the matter.

"I can't ride that. I'll fall off." Chanyeol protests, though very weakly, looking at the ground. The Elf gives him a look of disbelief and blinks at the horse next to him, looking a lot less scary without his emotionless gaze.

"The mist seems to have stopped so we'll ride at a walking pace then. But if it does start moving again, be prepared to ride fast for your life." the Elf says and jabs a finger in the direction of the other horse, black and seeming to tower over Chanyeol.

Chanyeol inhales deeply, calming his nerves before swinging up and onto the horse, proud of himself for only teetering slightly. He looks at the elf still on the ground.

"Fine." Chanyeol says, voice coming out clear despite the pounding of his heart and shaking of his hands. "It's not like I have a choice anyway, right?"

"No, you don't." the Elf responds, getting onto his own horse and starting off at a brisk trot, failing to give Chanyeol any warning when his horse automatically moves to follow. Chanyeol jerks backwards, toppling off the animal and feels himself being stared at.

“Are you even a Knight?” The Elf scoffs, looking down at Chanyeol with near disgust. Chanyeol jumps to his feet glaring.

“Yes I am.” Chanyeol says, making his voice as prideful as he can, but the Elf just snickers at him.

“This was a mistake.” He hears the Elf mutter under his breath and Chanyeol feels his anger build. Some little Gælgorn Elf isn't going to boss him around, no matter how pathetic he may appear. Chanyeol feels a sense of determination rise up inside him, turning the horse around and heading back towards the mist.

“Fuck this, I'm going home,” Chanyeol calls over his shoulder and breaks into a gallop, feeling the air quality shift around him. He squints through the barely there visibility.

He tries his best to navigate through the woods and not hit any trees, but he’s more worried about the heavy silence seeming to pour out of every corner. Chanyeol can’t hear a single thing , not even the sound of his breathing or hooves on the ground, and he starts to panic, gripping the horses neck tighter, slowing down the gallop to a slow walk.

Being in full silence, not able to hear or see is the most terrifying thing Chanyeol has ever experienced and he feels the horse whinny softly beneath him, twitching almost. Chanyeol gulps, wondering why it’s not skittish enough to bolt.

It’s because of this silence that Chanyeol doesn’t hear the quick footsteps and shuffling noises coming from his right, and doesn’t see the golden light shooting through the mist behind him.

Chanyeol doesn't hear the howl but he sees the shadow of a giant wolf come through the trees, landing directly on top of him and pushing him to the ground. Chanyeol lands flat on his back with the wolf's giant claws digging into his chest painfully, and he screams silently, tossing his head from side to side and writhing under the animal.

Chanyeol closes his eyes and accepts his fate. He's no knight and he's no hero, and he deserves this death for ignoring the Elf’s orders and going off.

Chanyeol waits for the pain, for the claws and teeth to tear him open, but it never comes. Instead the weight is lifted off him and he hears nothing, sees nothing and feels nothing, squeezing his eyes shut tighter. Chanyeol curls up into a ball, lifting his knees to his chest and attempting to melt into the ground, terrified, trapped and on the verge of hysterics.

There are hands, gripping his shoulders and gently lifting him off the ground, but he keeps his eyes shut, feels the tears well up. He feels a tap on his shoulder, a gentle shaking of his arms, and Chanyeol dares to peek his eyes open, one eye at a time slowly, until he sees the familiar face of the Elf in front of him.

The Elf doesn’t speak, just curls fingers around Chanyeol’s wrist and takes him back through the mist, head snapping back and forth in a constant search for danger. He holds a shimmering ball of light at the edge of his fingertips, guiding their way through the unknown and back into the known, back to the clearing that had seemed dark the first time around, but now seems the most inviting thing in the world to Chanyeol.

The horses are there, nervous and agitated, tails swishing and ears twitching. Chanyeol feels his breath let out, and he collapses to the ground the second he feels his senses coming back to life. His own breathing seems the loudest now, and he holds his hands over his ears, trying to choke back the whimper threatening to escape.

Chanyeol isn’t made out for this kind of thing. Chanyeol is made for ridiculous missions to cut shrubbery and home cooked meals. The Elf is hoisting him up again, this time dusting him off, sitting cross legged in front of him, features displaying something almost close to worry.

"Don't pity me," Chanyeol says, wincing at awful he sounds even to his own ears. "I'm sorry."

The Elf sits back, and for just a second he looks delicate, ears flattening back like a cats before he scoots himself closer with a sigh, holding out a hand.

"I'm Lu Han," He says, and Chanyeol wants to bark out a laugh at the awkward gesture. It stops quickly in his throat when he realizes that for this Elf, simply telling him his name seems to be a huge gesture, and Chanyeol shakily extends a hand to him.

He's surprised when Lu Han interlocks their fingers, a strand of the golden light that had led them through the mist twisting through and up Chanyeol's wrist, leaving him with a feeling much like the warmth of a hot drink spreading through him.

"What is-"

"I gave us a bond," Lu Han says, letting go of Chanyeol's hand and regarding him carefully, emotions almost unreadable in the dim lighting of the clearing. "It means that I can't intentionally harm you, and you can't intentionally leave me."

"Romantic," Chanyeol mutters, tapping his wrist where the gold light had sunk in, feeling it settle somewhere in his chest. "Is this how Gælgorn Elves propose?"

"I've just saved your life and you're insulting my kind," Lu Han narrows his eyes looking somewhere between amused and offended, but he doesn't scare Chanyeol anymore, not after the wolf and the deafness he'd experienced back in the mist. "Come. Get back on the horse," Lu Han continues, eyes flickering to where they'd come from, "I'm not sure how long this clearing may stay safe from the mist, and it may move fast when it starts again."

"But I need you to explain." Chanyeol protests, rising to his feet and looking down at Lu Han. He's fiddling with his ears, a nervous habit developed back in Heiðrún when he'd been teased about them; overly large even for an Elf.

"I'll explain when we get to Gælgorn. We can sleep there before heading through to Lei,” Lu Han's voice is wafting over to him from further away now as he mounts his horse to ride further into the trees. Chanyeol scrambles to leap onto the horse, teetering slightly, but making it safely on.

Chanyeol follows him without complaint now. He doesn't make remarks, or try to fight or turn back. There's no point to that when home means the mist, and mist means death. Lu Han doesn't talk much, looking back ever so often to make sure Chanyeol's following him. The light from his hands makes the trees seem sinister, towering around them in the darkness of night. Chanyeol doesn’t know anything about Gælgorn doesn’t know what it’s like, and fears that he won’t be welcomed there as an enemy of the territory.

Lu Han doesn’t say anything about it further, and Chanyeol hopes he’s confident enough in this prophecy and in his people to not tear Chanyeol limb from limb.

They ride for hours, and Chanyeol can feel the air becoming lighter around them, can see better even without Lu Han’s light, and he calms his joints, not realizing until he relaxes how stiff and on edge he’s been the entire journey.

Chanyeol is still scared, will probably _be_ scared the entire time he’s forced to be with Lu Han. He doesn’t trust the Elf, furious that he’s essentially been kidnapped into this.

With no reins to hold onto and little sleep from the previous day, Chanyeol is exhausted when they reach the edge of the trees, shaking his head to not doze off. They’re at the edge of a valley, one like Chanyeol has never seen before, massive and beautiful. The sight wakes him up, rising sun bright over the tops of trees and shining on a glistening lake, bluer than anything back home in Heiðrún.

He glances back at the trees, and he can see the mist rolling through towards them, slower than before, almost as if it’s taking it’s time, giving them a moment to revel in the beauty of the landscape the warmth of morning before taking it away.

“I’m home.” A voice whispers beside him, and Chanyeol turns to see Lu Han staring down into the valley, face impassive, but eyes sparkling brightly in the fresh light. “Welcome to Gælgorn.”

 

 

 

\---  The heart of the valley  \---

 

If someone had told Chanyeol two days ago that the home of the Heiðrún’s written enemy was this gorgeous, this breathtaking, he would have laughed in their face, would have told them that of course the Gælgorn live in grimy tunnels and worn down huts, sitting around in a circle plotting the downfall of the Heiðrún.

But Gælgorn is beautiful, with lush houses behind brick walls, vines of pretty flowers Chanyeol has never seen flowing over arches in place of gates. It's a simpler looking place than home, and gives Chanyeol the vague impression of a place that was once lush and royal but has become run down. It's beautiful. 

Lanterns line the dusty sand filled streets, lit by the same golden light that flows from Lu Han's fingers, growing dim in the growing light of day. It's not something Chanyeol is used to.

He's used to cascading waterfalls and castles of rainbow colours lining the mountain edges, but here he feels smaller the deeper into the valley they go, gazing up at the Dropfell mountains. His home is so far away, and he feels like an alien here, un-welcomed and foreign, tugging his Heiðrún cape around his shoulders as if shielding himself from the stares of young Gælgorn children who peek out of windows and around corners to stare at him.

Chanyeol trails behind Lu Han, but he watches him curiously, entranced by the difference in the way he walks, clearly comfortable being here. Chanyeol is about to open his mouth and ask where they're going when someone calls out to Lu Han and he nearly trips in shock.

"Prince Lu Han! You're back already?"

A young girl is running towards them, hair done up elegantly with bows made from a material Chanyeol doesn't recognize, and robes that seem to drip with protective magic. She looks startlingly like Lu Han, but Chanyeol is stuck on what she'd called Lu Han.

" _Prince_ Lu Han?" Chanyeol says, glancing between the two with wide eyes, his original fear of the Elf returning as he steps back, ears twitching and hands fidgeting.

Lu Han looks up at him from where he's crouching on the ground to hug the young Elf girl, and nods slowly, rising to his feet and taking the girl's hand.

"I told you I had things to explain." Lu Han says offhandedly, walking off briskly with the girl skipping along with him. Chanyeol follows him, feeling his fear receding already, because Lu Han doesn't look like a terrifying Elf to kill him or drag him away right now.

The Royal palace of Gælgorn is the last place Chanyeol has ever expected to enter in his life, and it looks completely different then he could ever expect, just like the rest of this enchanting valley.

It's situated into the side of the valley wall, made up of smaller buildings that extend into the rock itself. Chanyeol thinks he's never seen a building with this much character before, and Lu Han has to snap at him to hurry up, rolling his eyes at Chanyeol who just continues to stand still and stare at the towers and flags of the Gælgorn crest.

Once inside the palace, Chanyeol feels overwhelmed. It looked small from the outside, beautiful but almost normal like a temple from the past, but inside he can feel the magic pouring from the walls, and he thinks of the Heiðrún code, the laws on magic, realizing just how different the Gælgorn are.

There aren’t any laws here decreeing against the open use of magic, there aren’t any guards standing by the doors, and there doesn’t seem to be such a thing as security at all. Chanyeol supposes they don’t need the kind of Knights Heiðrún does when magic can help one fend for themselves.

Lu Han seems more youthful here, taking Chanyeol through a long hallway that becomes darker they go along. Chanyeol is nervous as they go deeper into the mountain.

“Where are we going?” Chanyeol asks, tripping over his feet as he tries to keep up with Lu Han’s brisk pace. “Are-are we sleeping in here for the night?”

“We’re going to my chambers.” Lu Han states simply, as if Chanyeol should have already figured it out, and he supposes he probably should have. “Are you scared of the dark or something? Your kind lives on the side of mountains, don’t you have buildings that go inside?”

“Uh, well no not really?” Chanyeol says, walking beside Lu Han now, studying the lanterns. Not a single thing here is lit by flame, and it unnerves him, the feel of magic seeming to jump from the walls and tingle along his skin. It’s the same feeling he had when Lu Han had first surprised him in the misty field by his home, and it’s nearly suffocating to him.

If a Heiðrún Elf uses any source of their own faerin, they must release it from themselves and back into the Earth to be replenished, but here it hangs in the air and crawls along the floor, like dusty particles of energy.

They arrive at a door nearly shrouded in darkness, but Lu Han simply waves his hand and the entire hallway lights up, door swinging open to reveal a room with high arching ceilings. The decorative walls and gigantic chandelier are gorgeous, but the furniture is simple and clothed in browns.

“I don’t have tables or anything in here so we’ll have to just sit on the carpet and eat, is that alright?” Lu Han calls out, disappearing somewhere and reappearing through a small door, kicking it closed behind him with an air of importance. 

Chanyeol sits down on the carpet, surprised at its softness, absentmindedly petting the material as he waits. He's always been fidgety, but right now he just can't stay still, running a constant hand through his hair and chewing on his bottom lip.

He's so caught up in being an agitated wreck that he doesn't even notice Lu Han sit down across from him on the floor. Chanyeol jolts up in surprise, mentally cursing the way his ears flatten back like a cat's when Lu Han smirks at him.

"Have you ever eaten Gælgorn bread before?" Lu Han asks, biting into a piece of something that looks more like a piece of gold than a piece of bread.

"Is everything here golden?" Chanyeol wonders, studying his bread like its about to eat him, raising an eyebrow.

"Our magic is heavily infused with faerin of the moss tunnels, so everything here develops a golden hue over time," Lu Han says, and this only makes Chanyeol more nervous about the food in his hands.

"It won't make me sick will it?" He blurts out, sniffing it, and something in Lu Han's glare tells him he's being offensive again, and he clamps his mouth shut. 

"It's fine," Lu Han mutters, yanking the bread out of Chanyeol's hand and shoving into his mouth u attractively, "more for me. You can starve."

"No! I'll eat it." Chanyeol's ears go red, and he stutters out his apology, nearly lunging forward to grab the remaining piece.

This earns him another smirk from the Elf, and Chanyeol pauses before taking a bite, feeling Lu Han watching him. It occurs to him then that Lu Han's probably waiting to see if he'll like it, and Chanyeol feels guilty, eating the piece in one gulp.

The flavour is surprisingly good, like honey and something he can't place, and Chanyeol makes a noise of happiness as he chews, shutting up quickly when Lu Han lets out what sounds like a giggle.

"Let's get down to business though, shall we?" Lu Han says, interrupting Chanyeol's experience of the best bread ever. "You wanted to know the details."

Chanyeol nods, chewing slowly, using all of his willpower not to lick his fingers clean after. He sits up straight in an attempt to look intelligent, something that as usual doesn't go unnoticed by the perceptive Elf.

Lu Han clears his throat, unsure of where to start for a brief second before putting down his food and looking Chanyeol over carefully.

“The Oracle stated that a Gælgorn prince, a Leí prince, a Heiðrún Knight and a human sorcerer are the main hope for a reverse.” Lu Han says, handing Chanyeol another piece of bread, eyes lighting up as he chews. “We need to gather the others and set through the forest to the marshlands.”

The bread feels like it’s lodged in Chanyeol’s throat, honey flavour choking more than his senses.

“I can’t go the marshlands.” Chanyeol yelps. “I’ve almost died once already, thank you. And why a human? They’re not that useful.”

“That was your own stupidity.” Lu Han snorts, with a hint of amusement in his voice that takes on a more serious tone very quickly, “You really don’t have a choice you know, you’re coming whether you like it or not. And a human sorcerer is definitely a lot more useful than you.”

Chanyeol stops chewing his bread and studies the patterned carpet. Sitting here in Lu Han’s room eating bread on the floor, it’s almost easy to forget that Chanyeol is a hopeless failure, kidnapped for the sole purpose of a prophecy, and not who Lu Han expected to help him. He’s been so close to thinking that maybe this Elf isn’t that bad after all. But as to be expected, a Gælgorn Elf knows of his place in the world, and knows of those underneath him.

Chanyeol puts his food down, appetite completely gone, and doesn’t look at Lu Han when he mutters, “Where do I sleep?”

“There’s a guest room through the door next to my bath chambers.” Lu Han says and his voice gives no indication of emotional remorse, or even noticing Chanyeol’s dejected state. Chanyeol nods, and rises to his feet, glancing nervously at his food and then at Lu Han, who sighs, picking up the plate off the ground and turning silently away from Chanyeol.

“We’re staying here for a week while I replenish and gather supplies for the rest of this journey. Don't bother with waking yourself early. You won't be needed," Lu Han tells him, and it sounds more like an order than a suggestion, but he pauses before adding, “Take all the rest you can while we’re here. Who knows when our next chance for proper and safe sleep will be.”

“Will they not let us rest in Leí or Thelgard?” Chanyeol asks, confusion setting in. “Leí is allied with Heidrun surely I just have to-”

“Have you never been to Leí?” Lu Han snaps. Chanyeol blinks, backs down. 

“Well, no. I’ve never been out of my territory,” Chanyeol mutters. Lu Han is doing the thing where he makes him feel incredibly stupid again, and he really doesn’t like it.

“Then don’t speak about things you know nothing about, ” Lu Han says, obviously irritated. He jabs a finger towards the guest room. “Go to sleep. I’ll explain how it all works tomorrow when you’re awake enough to actually soak up something other than bread.”

“You don’t have to be so rude,” Chanyeol says, voice rising, but he turns on his heel and stomps towards the room anyways, hair flopping ridiculously behind him. He’s about to go inside and slam the door when he hears soft footsteps approach.

Lu Han looks a little sorry, ears twitching, and he’s holding a worn out looking paper in his hand, gold in colour and frayed along the edges. “I have it written here if you want to read it before you rest,” He says, handing Chanyeol the paper and nodding to himself. Chanyeol notices that the nails on his fingers are also golden, shining in the dim light of the lanterns. 

“Everything really is golden.” He says quietly, taking the piece of paper out of Lu Han’s hand and holding it delicately, as if afraid to tear it. Unsure of proper etiquette he bows, aware of the fact that he’s walking a thin line with Lu Han’s patience, reminding himself that he’s not here to be Lu Han’s friend. “I’ll read it.”

“Good,” Is all Lu Han says, ushering Chanyeol into the room and closing the door in his face, leaving him in silence.

Chanyeol doesn’t have the energy to even look around the room, sinking down onto the bed and sighing, hugging a sandy coloured pillow to his chest and unfolding the paper in his hands.

It’s typed, but by the looks of it, not typed by someone familiar with a typewriter, a human invention that Chanyeol has always been fascinated with. He owns one, tucked into a corner of his room back home, passed down from his parents, along with old ink and other outdated but interesting things.

 

  
Chanyeol skims it first, looking for the part that speaks of his own destiny, and he shivers when he reads the words. ‘A Heiðrún Knight, caught on the edge of a territory.’ Perhaps it could have been any Knight out that day, perhaps it wasn’t meant for Chanyeol, but he remembers being lost, remembers a clear sense of foreboding.

The word Prince catches Chanyeol's attention. He doesn't know much about Leí but he does know it's hidden, closed off, ruled by a Queen. He's never heard of the Prince of Leí and he wonders what he's like.

Is he like Lu Han, mysterious but quick to anger? Or is he like Chanyeol himself, simpler and loyal to his kind?

Putting the paper down, Chanyeol tries not to think about what lies ahead of him, or what he must do to complete this journey. Even if he'd come willingly, even if he'd been a proper Knight, Chanyeol doubts he could survive the Marshlands, doubts he could survive the Calla. He's terrified of what the Mist will bring, of what dangers lie at their destination.

 

_Beings of old…immortals…_

 

None of this prophecy makes sense to him, none of anything makes sense to him, and Chanyeol thrashes around in the bed, tossing the sheets to the floor and staring at the wall. There are no windows here, and it serves as another reminder that they're deep in the mountains, safe from the mist but still not safe at all. Chanyeol hates being enclosed, and he hates feeling like there's no where to run, like he can't see the enemy coming. It makes him even more petrified, sitting up on the bed and hugging his knees to his chest.

He stays there for what seems like hours, listening to a faint sound of water running like a stream, though he knows there's no such thing in a place like this. The walls here seem thick, protected from collapsing, and Chanyeol's breathing becomes harsh as he tries to shut out the sound, the world spinning around him.

The water becomes unbearable, becoming a roar, and Chanyeol can't handle it anymore, leaping to his feet and rushing to the door, opening it as quietly as he can. He can find a washroom to hide in, somewhere cold and comforting without the sounds of water, of ghostly fountains.

The room is silent save for the strange stream noises and the sound of Lu Han's steady breathing, and this somehow comforts Chanyeol, knowing that Lu Han feels safe enough here to sleep, to rest without worry of danger. Yet he still fears, and his heart hammers in his chest so loudly that he worries about waking Lu Han up, inching his way along the wall, feeling for doorknobs.

When his hand hits one he gasps out loud, slapping a hand over his mouth and trying to control his breathing, startled from the cool material. It feels velvety almost, the kind of fabric that causes his gag reflex to trigger, and he shudders, turning the knob.

A loud screeching noise fills the room and Chanyeol yelps, tripping backwards and landing on the floor with a thump. A now familiar golden light fills the room, leaving him exposed and wide eyed on the floor.

Chanyeol is afraid to look up, surveying the room through his fingers, cringing when he sees Lu Han half in bed, and half out of it, dagger clutched close to his chest and eyes flashing a startling red. If he wasn't holding a dangerous weapon Chanyeol would have cooed at the Elf, clothed in human pyjamas, hair ruffled and eyelashes fluttering, looking innocent in the dim lighting.

"What the fuck are you doing." Lu Han snarls, the innocent image gone instantly. Chanyeol whimpers, jumping shakily to his feet and attempting to slide along the wall and back to the guest room.

"Where are you going, don't you fucking move," Lu Han threatens, taking a step forward, slender fingers gripping the dagger, ready to attack, and Chanyeol feels his legs nearly give out in fear, anxiety attack having not subsided enough for him to have any sort of rational thought.

"I-I-I just-" His words aren't working, and his hands tremble as he points a finger in the direction of the door. "I got scared- water sounds and mountains and dark- and bath chamber?"

Lu Han blinks slowly, making sense of Chanyeol's stuttered and fragmented words, lowering the dagger and letting out a sigh.

"You're actually pathetic." Lu Han mumbles mostly to himself, dropping the dagger with a loud clunk against a table and walking swiftly over to Chanyeol, yanking him towards a completely different door and practically shoving him inside. "The water noises are the plumbing. The pipes run along the walls and under the floor. You'll have to deal with it. You have ten minutes."

"What happens if I take longer?" Chanyeol chances, trying to lighten up the heavy mood brought on by Lu Han's black mood.

"I'll lock you in there for the entirety of our stay." The Elf snaps, closing the door and disappearing, leaving Chanyeol to gulp nervously, sitting down on the cold tiles and glaring at their colour. Fucking gold.

 

 

☁

Chanyeol wakes up in darkness, unsure of how late he's slept in, unsure of whether or not it's even morning, and he groans loudly, tossing an arm across the bed and burying his face in the overly soft pillow. He cocoons himself in, not prepared to move or even think, groggy from his awful sleep of tossing and turning, hoping that everything would disappear and he would be back in his room in Heidrun, waking up to the smell of fish pancakes and laughing along with his housemates.

Sadly though, he's still in Gælgorn, deep in the mountains in a valley and territory he doesn't belong in, stuck with an Elf who thinks he's useless, on his way to meet more Elves who will probably also think he's useless. Chanyeol knows this isn't the time for insecurities, isn't the time to curl in on himself sadly. He isn't usually the timid type, known for being loud and boisterous, for speaking his mind and taking everything in stride.

Lu Han is impossible to be with, and Chanyeol feels constantly on edge, ready to face death or ridicule from both him and the outside world, still reeling from his near death experience with the Calla wolf, far out of it's own territory. He can still feel it knocking him backwards, can still picture the intense fear in his mind, the overwhelming silence.

Lu Han hadn't saved his life out of the good of his heart, but because Chanyeol is a necessity, kept around for the sake of a years old prophecy hastily typed on cheap paper. He's bitter and scared, but not brave enough to try and go home, not brave enough to enter deep into the mist by himself.

Bravery comes in small steps though, and it's with this in mind that Chanyeol creeps up from the bed, smoothing out his hair and standing in front of the door. Lu Han had been terrifying last night, snarly and half asleep as he'd led Chanyeol back to the guest room and told him that if he made any more noise the dagger would be put to use.

Chanyeol knows Lu Han can't hurt him because of their bond, but he still wants to keep things amiable and calm between them, because the last thing he needs is an excruciating mission to become even worse.

Chanyeol reaches for the glassy looking doorknob, jumping back with a yelp when the knob starts turning, the door swinging open to reveal Lu Han, fully dressed in elegant clothing, looking every bit the Prince he actually is, and not a wandering rider like he had been since Chanyeol met him back in Heidrun.

"Ah, sleeping beauty, you're awake." Lu Han says, sarcasm dripping in his voice, and Chanyeol scrunches up his nose in confusion at the reference.

"Sleeping beauty?" He asks, voice cracking with sleep.

"Yes, it's a human play… I thought it was custom across all Elven nations to learn human literature," Lu Han answers, peeking around him and raising an eyebrow at the mess of blankets created from Chanyeol's restless sleep.

"Uh no?" Chanyeol tries, awkwardly scratching his neck and wondering if he should sit down or go outside or-

Lu Han just stares at him though as if trying to decide whether he's joking or not, before shaking his head and walking off, motioning for Chanyeol to follow.

"I'm meeting with my Mother today, so you'll have to stay in my room," Lu Han announces, picking up a plate of food, a different kind of bread then yesterday, but still foreign to Chanyeol. "You can amuse yourself as you like but keep your nose out of places it doesn't belong."

Chanyeol opens his mouth to retort but snaps it closed quickly. Lu Han doesn't seem to be in a better mood than last night, eyes still flashing in a way that makes him nervous. He doesn't push his luck, sitting down on the floor and taking a tentative bite of the new bread and sighing with relief when this one also tastes good; like thorin nuts and chocolate.

"If you want any food I'll leave the pantry room open for you," Lu Han says, pulling on a pair of lavish boots, and heading towards the door, turning back to add, "Just don't eat it all."

 

 

 

☁

Chanyeol gets bored within minutes, laying on the carpet and staring at the ceiling, creating stories in the patterns, tracing triangles with his fingers. Rolling around the floor is almost peaceful, and he nearly forgets his situation for a while, thoughts wandering to Lei and the paintings he's seen in the ponds of Heiðrún, mirages made by magic to create a portal.

It's the closest he's ever been to their elusive forest allies, sitting for hours at the ponds as a younger child and staring into the moving images filled with glowing lights and mossy trees.

Chanyeol used to dream when he was younger that he would be an important Knight, impressive enough to be sent to Lei to take a forest bride like the famous Heiðrún soldiers of the first war. His mind goes other places now though, to thoughts of cute Elven boys in tunics made from bay leaves, woven cloth decorated with Miirthric flowers, trails of soft green energy shining through the trees and around hair.

It's silly to be dreaming about a future like this when his own current one is hazy, filled with mist and fear and nothing good. Reality is hitting him like the current of a waterfall, and Chanyeol's eyes fill with tears as he lays on the floor. He lets them spill over his cheeks, not caring about what he looks like, thoughts of glowing lights and pretty boys vanishing to reveal thoughts of ferocious beasts and dripping swamp sirens instead.

He dozes off like this on the carpet, tear stained cheeks and rapidly blinking eyes, falling into a nightmare that he doesn't understand, full of tall imposing _things_ with eyes like craters and fingers like decaying sprouts. Chanyeol doesn't remember these dreams when he wakes up, but he remembers the caving feeling of his heart, clutching his chest and coughing out sobs as he wakes up to find himself still alone in the silent room.

 

 

 

☁

Lu Han doesn't speak to Chanyeol that night, walking into the room with a defeated posture, not even bothering to spare a glance in his direction. He disappears into the side room with the screeching doorknob, and when he doesn't come out Chanyeol takes this as a cue to go into his own designated room, collapsing onto the bed and staring at yet another ceiling.

He doesn't sleep much that night, leaning against the stone wall and listening to the stream of water that has somehow become comforting to him. He's confused about the sudden change in Lu Han's behaviour, from condescending and driven to irritable and untalkative, but he knows it's not his place to pry.

Chanyeol wakes up mid afternoon with a screaming back, shoulders aching from where he's curled up in an awkward position on the unwelcoming floor. He doesn't move at first, too drained from absolutely nothing at all, wondering if Lu Han would even notice if he didn't leave this room at all, didn't go out into the main room or the hallways.

The room is inky black, and Chanyeol can still hear nothing aside from the water flowing through the pipes, and he curls back up on the floor, lacking the energy to climb onto the bed. He'd had another nightmare during his fitful sleep, but he still can't place where the heart squeezing terror is stemming from, pressing his ear to the floor like he's listening through a peephole, desperate for answers, for life to go back to being dead shrubs and extra dinners.

Chanyeol is afraid.

 

 

 

♔; fear; : an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat.  
  


 

 

 

 

 

\---  3 hours North of Calladron \---

 

 

 

The sun doesn't shine in Amfi. Rocky towers and murky caves bathed in an almost constant darkness, wisps of black smoke falling around the ankles of a gliding being.

 

_fear_

 

Slithering through the mist and chanting soft words, ones that seem to chorus and harmonize, fragments of beauty becoming deformed and grotesque in the faint glow radiating from the red creeks, enriching features.

 

_Felghrasti elg pozhwekhlaus unkhirinshi Calladron gelflength  From the Calladron they travel, not four but nine._

 

Voices that could be mistaken for the trickling of water, or heard at a distance as shrieks of a dying creature. A parallel of horror and grace, enveloped by the mist, safe in the dripping caves of damned things.

 

_fear_

 

A sacred number, not to be tampered with, not to be used against those who rule over the Calladron, those who _will_ rule over the Calladron. The Amphaerie with it's empty soul and hollow eyes, raising up from the pond of blood to breathe white noise near it's fellow empty soul.

 

_Zitao, felghrasti. Felghrasti, ankhel igska peg.  
Zitao, nine. There cannot be nine._

_Implaus igska detchunji orhbaeg, Sehun. Dautchbun.  
They are nothing but simple imps, Sehun. Don't worry._

_Should we alert Kai?_

_ no. _

 

Calm even in the face of danger, imposing, powerful, robes of dead silk, curving bodies, mangled by years of disuse, diseased wraiths of times past, unafraid of trivial things, trivial beings. Hidden in the mist, the black smoke, chanting words of magic, terrifying like a moment right before a storm.

Tearing the heart from the lifeless body of the necromancer who granted them access to this rich and beautiful world, his screams still echoing within the walls.

 

_fear_

 

 

☁

Chanyeol wakes up screaming on the floor, thrashing and kicking, hitting his head on the bricks. The impact startles his already panicked state and he scrambles backwards, knocking over the table in the corner of the room, hands frantically grabbing onto the bed legs for stability.

The door slams open, bathing the room in light and Chanyeol cowers in the corner, hands over his head to shield himself. He's heaving, breath caught in his throat, and the room seems smaller, walls caving in on him.

He screams, fights against the arms that grip his own, not hearing the worried sounding voice repeating that there's nothing here. Chanyeol continues to writhe against what's holding him, coughing out sobs, until his eyelids are lit up with a bright gold and he slumps to the floor unconscious.

The bed he regains conscious thought in is different. Bigger and warmer, with a faint smell of honey that Chanyeol tries to chase, burying himself deeper into a heavy blanket made of material so soft he could die in it. He's too tired to care why it's different, too tired to remember the events from earlier, rolling over in the dark room and tossing his arm to stretch.

His hand comes in contact with something that definitely isn't more soft blankets though, and he yanks it back, sitting up in confusion and glancing beside him to see a twitching figure. A twitching figure that was asleep until he'd hit it, sitting up beside him and _growling_ in frustration.

"I'm nice enough to let you sleep here and this is how I'm repaid?" A voice snaps out at him, irritated with lack of sleep.  Chanyeol inches closer to the other edge of the bed.

"I'm sorry?" Chanyeol tries, feeling as though he's speaking to a particularly touchy cat. "Why am I sleeping here?"

Chanyeol can't quite make out Lu Han's features in the dark, but he can imagine he's being glared at. That or Lu Han's plotting his death.

"You had a nightmare and wouldn't stop thrashing around and freaking out so I had to knock you out." Lu Han says, and his tone of voice tells Chanyeol that it wasn't a fun time. He cringes apologetically. "I thought if I stuck you in here you'd stop you know ... losing your shit in the middle of the night."

Chanyeol blinks, swearing he heard something defeated in Lu Han's words.

"So you do have a heart," He jokes weakly, racking his brain for the memory of his nightmares, but it isn't cooperating.

"Don't push your luck," Lu Han says lowly, falling backwards and dragging an exasperated hand down his face. "Go to sleep."

Within minutes Chanyeol can hear Lu Han's soft breaths, the Elf already fast asleep while he's still sitting up, clutching an overly fluffy pillow and lost in his own thoughts.

Sleeping isn't easy now, Chanyeol fretting over the glimpses of something tall and hellish flitting through dreams, names coming to the tip of tongue that he knows but swears he's never heard.

Chanyeol hasn't slept in a bed with someone in years, and he finds himself thinking its a shame Lu Han's not his type. The thought nearly makes him laugh out loud, thinking of the Elf with his too-delicate facial features and closed off attitude. He mentally sends a prayer to whoever has to deal with this one emotionally.

The ceiling patterns above Lu Han's bed look familiar in the light of the lantern across the room, and Chanyeol squints, trying to make out the words. It's Ancient Elvish, a subject Chanyeol now wishes he hadn't skimmed by in class, only able to decipher every second word.

But every second word is enough for Chanyeol to recognize the words, an ancient prayer used by Mothers to protect their children, one that Chanyeol used to see on all the Knights shields, engraved in tiny gold lettering.

All the Knights except Chanyeol that is, his own shield devoid of any decoration at all, silver and rusted.

He falls asleep with memories fresh, the laughter of home ringing in his ears, leaving his tongue with the faint taste of ginger.

 

 

 

☁

Chanyeol asks Lu Han about the prayer the next day over a lunch of bread made from ghouri, a rich fruit from the trees of the forest near Lei. Lu Han stops eating, blinking slowly and glancing up at the ceiling, bending backwards in a way that looks kind of ridiculous.

"You surely know what that is right?" Lu Han looks back at him in confusion, pursing his lips. "I thought that was the same for all Elves."

"I know what it is, but I've never seen one placed like that, especially in Royal families." Chanyeol says, wincing at his own lack of tact, opening his mouth to word things better but coming up with nothing.

"Are you implying that Royal families aren't close?" Lu Han asks, but there's no anger or annoyance in his tone today, something that Chanyeol is grateful for.

"Well the Prince of Heiðrún has never met his parents so I just assumed it was like that everywhere." Chanyeol explains, rubbing the back of his neck self consciously. "But seeing the way you greet your sister and talk about your family I'll assume that's not the case."

"Your kingdom saddens me," Lu Han states, leaning back against the foot of his bed and raising an eyebrow. "You govern the use of magic, something natural to our kind and there's no kinship."

"There's kinship," Chanyeol argues, trying in vain to defend his kind. "The Knights are very close, and so are the regular families. It's just the royal family and the government."

Lu Han doesn't answer him, just nods and focuses on his food. He looks drained, and Chanyeol itches to know what he's been doing all this time, leaving frequently during the day and only returning to give Chanyeol a new strange meal, or to sleep. Chanyeol knows his boundaries though and he doesn't ask, and they lapse into a silence, both lost in their own thoughts.

Despite being locked in Lu Han's room every day since he's been here - how many days _have_ they been here? - Chanyeol can feel a weird sense of friendship building between them. He feels less like a prisoner each time they talk, and more like a companion, the air becoming easier between them.

"The prayer was put there the day the prophecy was announced," Lu Han says suddenly, jerking Chanyeol's attention back over to him. He looks somber, speaking slowly like the words are hard to say.

Lu Han gets up, walking into the side room, and returns with his bow, made of shimmering gold material and rimmed with something that looks like ruby. He takes it apart piece by piece, and motions for Chanyeol to sit closer.

Each piece of the bow has a different line of the prayer, written out in handwriting more beautiful than Chanyeol has ever seen before, and he assumes it must be the writing of Lu Han's mother, the Queen.

"This is for when I travel, though I've not had to use it until recently. It was given to me at birth," Lu Han says, running his fingers delicately over the curved edges, eyes shining with emotion.

"You got a bow at birth?" Chanyeol says incredulously, poking the thin wire as a small wave of jealousy passes through him.

"Well yes. You never know when you'll need protection," Lu Han says it like it's the simplest thing. "Were you not gifted an item of protection at birth?"

"No," Chanyeol says weakly, frown displaying on his features. "I wasn't given anything."

"I'm surprised." The Elf Prince responds, snapping the parts of his bow back together easily, as if he's done it many times before. "You must have a really loving prayer to have kept you alive through your clumsiness."

"I guess so," Chanyeol says, looking down at the floor and chewing on his fingers, unsure of what to say, unsure of how to go about this conversation. He feels like a downer, his sudden change of mood not going unnoticed by Lu Han, who gives him a slightly concerned glance before returning the bow to the room. He thankfully doesn't push it through, asking Chanyeol if he wants dessert and granting him access to sleep in his bed again to avoid more nightmares.

 

 

 

☁

They're both hiding something from each other is what Chanyeol decides later that night as he stares at the ceiling once again, tracing the words with his fingers. He can feel the power of the letters falling down on them like falling snow, and wonders what it's like to have The Mother's Prayer, what it's like to have the words whispered over him as a child, what it's like to walk through life confidently knowing that Zafkra, the Elven deity has granted them the highest form of motherly love.

Zafkra loves all, but no one can love like a Mother loves her child. Chanyeol faintly wonders if Lu Han also has an amulet, something also given to young Elves by their Mothers, sighing to himself as he turns over sadly, wiping the tears that threaten to fall with his sleeve. He hears movement beside him, but stills, pretending to be asleep, muffling a stray sob with his fist.

His efforts are useless though, and Chanyeol brings his knees to his chest stubbornly when he sees beams of light skitter across the floor and into the lanterns, bathing the room in a soft glow that reminds him slightly of home, and of the fireflies that nest in the lakes within the mountains.

"Why are you crying?" A voice asks right next to his ear and Chanyeol jumps, sitting up as straight as a honey plant, hastily cleaning his eyes.

"I'm not crying, just go back to sleep," He mutters, hugging himself with his arms, voice muffled by his sleeves.

"I can't sleep with you sniffling beside me." Lu Han says, and his face is ugly when he looks this annoyed, but Chanyeol is beginning to think annoyance is simply a mask for worry

"It's nothing. I'm just thinking of home," Chanyeol supplies, and it's not exactly a lie, but it's not the full truth either.

"I'm sorry," Lu Han murmurs and Chanyeol squints at him in shock. This is the first time Lu Han has apologized, has even shown remorse for ripping Chanyeol away from his peaceful life. "I don't want to leave my home either."

"But you already did," Chanyeol says perplexed. "You came and got me?"

"Ah but that was with the knowledge that I would return here for a while until setting out again." Lu Han says quietly, fiddling with the hem of his blanket. "The mist is moving again, you know. It's hit the outer towns of Gaelgorn. We have to leave soon."

"Oh."

"I'm sorry I haven't told you," Lu Han says, collapsing back into his pillows and looking sideways at Chanyeol. "It's hard to face leaving again, especially with the situation here."

"Situation?" Chanyeol asks tentatively, unsure if he's crossing boundaries.

"My Mother is sick," Lu Han responds, though his voice is even quieter than before. "I don't want to leave her like this, but I have to."

He pauses, licking his lips and sighing, eyes closing and hands going limp. "In a way, you're not the only who's being forced out of their home and on this journey."

Chanyeol stays still where he's been sitting, taking in Lu Han's words and feeling a sense of regret flow through him as he stares at the wall, still illuminated by Lu Han's cloudy lanterns. Lu Han is already asleep beside him, soft snores the only sound in the room besides the now recognizable sound of the water pipes, and it works to soothe Chanyeol, as he lays back down as quietly as possible as to not wake him again.

The lanterns stay lit until long after Chanyeol falls asleep, and are still lit when he wakes up alone in the bed. As usual he has no idea what time it is, blinking groggily at the door, wishing he could at least go into the eerie hallway.

He decides to try, creeping out of bed and inching towards the door, fearing that Lu Han will pop out of a random dark corner with his dagger any second, but nothing comes and he finds himself standing in front of the doors they'd walked into a week ago.

The doors seem intimidating now and Chanyeol swallows, twisting the doorknob and stepping out carefully into the hallway, only to jump back with a shrill noise. Lu Han is standing on the other side of the door, hair seeming to glow, lit up by the faerin light in his hands, looking ruffled and confused.

"What are you doing?" Lu Han asks, walking forward and causing Chanyeol to back up quickly, tripping over his heels and nearly falling to the ground.

" Well, I-"

"I have you in here for your own safety you know," Lu Han says, dropping a bag onto his bed and fixing Chanyeol with an unreadable look. "if you want to leave that badly, we're going tomorrow."

Lu Han seems emotionless as he talks to Chanyeol, all closeness from the evening gone. Chanyeol nervously claps his hands together, anxiety setting in as he takes a step forward, and then back, rocking on his heels, unsure of what to do.

"I'm sorry. I was just curious," Chanyeol says, voice completely defeated as he stares at his toes. "I can't even tell what time it is in here."

Lu Han doesn’t answer, giving Chanyeol another unreadable look before sweeping out of the room. He doesn’t return for hours, and Chanyeol gives up waiting for him, staring at the clutter from the bag Lu Han had brought on the bed. There’s no room for sleeping and he doesn’t want to risk moving anything, lest he make Lu Han angry, so he slinks off to the horrible guest room, crawling beneath covers that seem to scratchy and walls that seem to close in on him.

He surprisingly falls asleep quickly, squeezing out the thoughts of being alone and enclosed, falling into more dreams he'll never remember.

 

 

\--------------------------

♔; nightmare; : a terrifying or very unpleasant experience or prospect.

\--------------------------

 

 

One could describe the Amphaerie as a nightmare. An illusion of grace before tearing it aside to be replaced by sheer terror. An Amphaerie is not born, but created, through whispers and chants, years of decay caused by war and bloodshed, made immortal through the magic that flows through the veins of the Elves.

Superior ones, with one wish to make the world as superior as them, to breathe their hollow futures into the souls of those still innocent. It seems promising at first, the things they promise.

 

_Help us, become us, and we will grant you immortality, beauty, power beyond nothing else._

 

Empty promises, misleading offers, words that convey no truth, that convince and deceive the ambitious, the selfish and the greedy. Wisps of existence in the air, hushed wind into unsuspecting ears, the right ears.

Brought back to life to a feast of their favourite meal, to breathe the air right out of the lungs of the beautiful, of the gullible humans.

Spreading their mists and ordering their underling creatures to kill for them, to enslave the world in fear and create the chaos they want before the order calms over.

To kneel before someone of power -- a basic want they say. No Mother's Prayer, no Lover's Bond can break the stare of an Amphaerie, can reclaim lost minds from the hypnosis. No amount of bravery can revive someone dead in the mist, no amount of screaming can be heard through the thick clouds of death.

 

_fear_

 

 

\--------------------  
♔; follow; : act according to (an instruction or precept); go or come after (a person or thing proceeding ahead); move or travel behind; practice (a trade or profession).

\--------------------

 

 

The moment they have to leave the palace, to venture outside the mountain and return to the misty pathways of the outer world, comes way too quickly for Chanyeol's liking. He eats through his plate of honey bread like it will be his last; though he knows Lu Han has shrunk entire loaves for them to live off of.

Lu Han is sighing at him, bow tucked into his lap like a child, chin resting on his palms. He looks lost, far away from the room they're sitting in, staring forward at Chanyeol, but past Chanyeol.

"We're taking the southern passageway," Lu Han says in a detached voice, eyes betraying nothing, something Chanyeol has gotten used to. "It'll take us into the moss tunnels and directly into Lei. It should be safe and relatively free of mist."

"That's good," Chanyeol says, coughing through a dry mouthful of bread. "So it'll be easy and won't take us long?"

"No, only a few hours at most. Lei is close to here." Lu Han replies, yawning and adjusting his bow, absently trailing a finger over the shooting string. "It'll be nightfall by the time we get there, so we'll have to be quiet when we enter or they'll suspect an ambush."

Chanyeol's eyes widen slightly as he thinks about that situation arising, imagining terrifying wood Elves, dressed in leaves and covered with war paint leaping down from the trees and screaming his death.

"Surely they won't kill us?" He says, dragging a hand through his hair in worry, nose scrunching up.

"They won't kill us no," Lu Han grins, something that looks more like a grimace when it doesn't quite reach his eyes. "I'm a Prince."

"Prince perks," Chanyeol mutters darkly, finishing his bread and dusting off his pants. It feels weird to wear his Heiðrún cape, fondly wishing he could bring along the soft pajamas he's been living his days and nights in.

But the moment is here, and Chanyeol is finally leaving the comfort of Lu Han's chambers, stepping out into the rest of the palace for the first time in a long time. He tiptoes down the hallway after Lu Han, afraid of making too much noise, feeling like an animal that's been in captivity for too long. He's scared to go somewhere unsafe, scared to be away from the confining yet harmless room.

The sunlight is dimmed from the thin lying mist, yet blindingly bright to Chanyeol. He covers his eyes, wincing from the pain and walks at a trot, squinting to see his way, struggling to keep up with Lu Han.

Lu Han is walking fast, and Chanyeol nearly trips over a rock as they turn a sharp corner, down a flight of stone steps, into the underbelly of the city. The mist is thicker down here, muffling the above world but not completely silencing it, and Chanyeol shivers, drawing his cape around and trying very hard not to chew on his fingers in stress.

They eventually reach a mossy entrance, shadowed through an archway of vines, hidden and secretive, tucked away into the lower part of Gaelgorn. Lu Han pauses, turning behind him and staring through the mist, seemingly frozen. Chanyeol hesitates and stops, startled by Lu Han's behaviour when the Elf kneels to close to the ground and trails the soft sand through his fingers, bringing one to his lips and kissing it, before saluting the air.

He says something that Chanyeol thinks he's not meant to catch, before turning back towards the entrance and grabbing Chanyeol's wrist, yanking him into the tunnel and out of Gaelgorn.

_This is it,_  Chanyeol thinks as he rushes across a rickety bridge situated over a roaring underground river. _The true test starts now_

He doesn't have time to appreciate the river of water, or the sunlight peeking in through the fog, cracks in the ceiling giving way to small beams of light.

"The water that freaks you out at night." Lu Han comments as they reach the other side, letting go of Chanyeol's wrist and looking around swiftly to gauge their surroundings.

"You need to stick right behind me okay?" Lu Han commands, taking his dagger out and gazing into his reflection. "These tunnels like to trick people, create fake entrances and paths that lead nowhere. I know the way through but without me you may die, understood?"

Chanyeol nods rapidly, feeling a shiver run through him, and he rubs his arms for support, stepping closer to Lu Han. He looks back with a small gasp to see that the bridge is no longer behind them, mossy wall silent and unwelcoming.

The tunnels are terrifying in the sense that Chanyeol doesn't where to go, doesn't know how they would turn back, practically clinging to Lu Han when a bridge seems to give out under them, yelping when Lu Han tugs him over to the side, explaining that it's just an illusion. They're also weirdly beautiful, illuminated by the magic that hangs in the air, reflecting off the moss and creating a hum in the air, electrifying Chanyeol's senses and distracting him.

"The faerin is tricky here." Lu Han mutters after one too many times plucking Chanyeol from the moss and steering him towards another dark yet weirdly glowing entrance way, clamping a hand over his ears to block out the entrancing voices that come from nowhere, persuading them to turn around, to climb back over the bridge and fall into the water.

"Illusions of sirens," Lu Han says as they round another corner, ground sticky beneath them and air teaming with humidity. "It tricks you into hearing the voice of a siren and plunging to your death. Just as effective as real sirens."

"How are you not affected by any of this," Chanyeol pants, exhausted from the effort of keeping up with Lu Han's brisk, almost jogging pace.

"I grew up in these tunnels," The Elf says, fingers wrapping around Chanyeol's wrist once again to drag him down a tunnel that seems to never end, getting darker and darker as they walk. "I trained here. I know these inside and out, and for someone skilled it cuts our travel time in half."

Chanyeol has no idea how long they've been in the tunnels, time warping around them as he heaves out tired breaths, lungs feeling constricted by the heavy muggy air. He stops at one point in a small clearing, clutching his chest and coughing, Lu Han spinning around in alarm and running over to him. He places a hand on Chanyeol's chest, like some kind of healing leaf, spreading warmth through Chanyeol's body, faint golden glow clearing his lungs and head.

"Thank you," He mutters, voice faltering. Chanyeol feels like he's underwater, steps heavy as he struggles to keep up with Lu Han who's still walking briskly. It's another amount of untraceable time and infinite turns until they reach an opening, brighter than the rest and reeking of promise, of sunlight and outdoors. Chanyeol could cry seeing the end of them, collapsing on the grass outside and breathing heavily, barely hearing Lu Han's faint laughter above him.

"You made it," Lu Han says cheerfully, extending a hand to help Chanyeol and keeping hold of it as they cross a rocky river path. Chanyeol is amazed at the beauty of where they are, plants colourful and blooming, the twilight air feeling light compared to the suffocating heat of the moss tunnels, and he stands up straight as they walk, craning his neck to take in the pastel coloured monkeys leaping from branch to branch.

"Are we in Lei now?" Chanyeol asks breathlessly, running a hand along the damp trunk of a low lying tree, eyes glistening as he looks back to Lu Han.

"Yes we are," Lu Han says, coming to a stop beside him and tilting his head to one side, listening beyond the forest noises for the telltale scurry of Elven feet and shifter paws. Lu Han walks again, taking them deeper into the trees, stopping when they reach the base of a giant trunk, engraved with calligraphy Chanyeol has never seen before, beautiful and looping, leaving him with a feeling in his chest he can't locate.

"What does that say?" Chanyeol asks abruptly, pointing to the engravings, not understanding why his lungs feel as if they're about to collapse.

"Come forth, brave one and meet your destiny," Lu Han tells him, tracing the lines with his fingers and smiling at Chanyeol. "Why do you ask?"

"It makes my heart feel weird." Chanyeol says quietly, afraid to reach out his hands and do the same, afraid to feel these words against his palms.

Lu Han answers him in the form of a soft hum, looking at Chanyeol curiously before, gazing up into the sky, into a body of branches so thick that Chanyeol can't see anything past them.

"This is the part I hate." Lu Han says with a sigh, placing two fingers between his lips and whistling, _loud._

"The part you hate?" Chanyeol asks confused, but jumps backwards when a gigantic green leaf floats to the ground, hovering in front of them. "What is-"

"Shut up and get on the leaf," Lu Han says shortly, sitting on it right in the middle, ushering Chanyeol on. "Hurry before it leaves without you."

Chanyeol know by now not to argue or question what Lu Han says, leaping onto the fragile looking plant, gasping when it starts to rise from the ground. He peers over the edge, fascinated that a thin leaf can hold their weight, but then he supposes it must be magic, though he's never seen Elven magic like this.

Chanyeol turns on the leaf to ask Lu Han, but pauses, staring. Lu Han is gripping the edges of the leaf, curling his fingers in and squeezes his eyes shut, and Chanyeol has to hold back a chuckle.

"Are you okay?" Chanyeol asks, poking him in the arm, and the Elf lets out a whoosh of breath, eyes snapping open and hand flying out to claw at Chanyeol's arm.

"It's fine. I'm okay," Lu Han pants, words coming out in half sentences, eyes darting back and forth, but never down. "It's just. Heights. Not my thing. Are we there yet?"

Chanyeol actually laughs this time,  before pulling Lu Han to the centre of the leaf and letting him cling to his arm, enjoying seeing _him_ be the scared stuttering one for once.

“Oh, how the tables have turned,” Chanyeol grins, wincing when Lu Han digs his nails into his shoulders in retaliation and swears at him.

The higher they go, the more distracted Chanyeol becomes, watching the sun set over a misty horizon and batting at the colourful fireflies that flit in and out of his vision. It’s beautiful up here, so much so that Chanyeol isn’t sure he ever wants to go back to the ground, mouth hanging open as he watches rays of stray light hit the leaves and branches, illuminating everything in a soft neon light.

Where Gaelgorn had been full of dazzling gold, the branches and canopies are filled with deep greens, and neon colours, a haven of light and shadow, making Chanyeol’s breathing stop as he takes it all in. There’s magic in abundance here, but it doesn’t hang in the air like at Gaelgorn. Instead, it thrives, twisting around trees and manifesting itself in floating balls of element. Chanyeol twists around to follow one particular orb of energy, crackling with electricity and floating around them, as if watching them.

The orb floats hovers above them until they reach a grassy slope, and Chanyeol stares at the wooden structures surrounding them, the pathways and houses of the tree tops, completely hidden from the forest floor and _beautiful_.

The leaf deposits them roughly on the damp platform before disintegrating into smoke like substance, shining a bright teal before seeping into the moss around them. The magic here is given back to the Earth naturally, and Chanyeol is curious, stepping to where it's been given back to the tree, running a hand along the soft plants and humming.

A sound like bells startles him from his fascination though, and Chanyeol whips around just in time to see the ball of light turn into a person, or to be more exact, a sprite. The sprite is good-looking --  sharp features and feline eyes, lips curving into a permanent grin -- and Chanyeol wonders why every single person he's meeting lately seems to stupidly gorgeous.

"What business brings you here," The sprite asks in a voice that sounds soothing but demands an answer, looking past Chanyeol and at Lu Han. Lu Han looks a little dazed, glancing behind him and at the edge nervously, before snapping back to attention and walking over to the sprite with purpose in his step.

"Jongdae," He greets the sprite, bowing slightly and thrusting out a hand backwards to drag Chanyeol forward by his sleeves. "We're here to speak with the Prince."

"The Prince?" Jongdae mutters, sounding surprised. His eyes rake over Chanyeol, settling on the Heidrun crest across his heart, and Chanyeol finds himself self consciously drawing his arms around himself. "What business do you have with the Prince? And with a Heiðrún Knight in tow at that?"

Lu Han hesitates, eyes darting quickly to the side and at Chanyeol before clearing his throat, and straightening up. Chanyeol would think he looked very royal and important, but after getting to know him, he can see right through the act, can see the nervous twitch in Lu Han's presence.

"We're here to discuss something confidential," Lu Han says, getting right to the point. "I can give the details of it to you, if you'd pass them on to the royal chamber."

Jongdae's eyebrows raise at the commanding tone of Lu Han's voice, but his lips raise up in a kind of sneer, and he bows lightly.

"Give me the details, Prince and I'll pass them on," Jongdae says, airily, and Chanyeol feels suspicious, standing anxiously behind Lu Han, ears perked and listening.

Lu Han reaches into his bag, and Chanyeol can feel the faerin from it, stronger here where the quality of the energy clashes, and the worn paper crackles as it touches Jongdae's fingers. The sprite reads it over once briefly, before glancing up at Lu Han in disbelief, leer dropping off his face to be replaced with something less promising.

"He'll never agree to go along with this," Jongdae says, shaking his head and reading the paper again, frowning now. He mutters something to himself that neither Chanyeol nor Lu Han hears, but sighs and looks back to them.

"As a Prince you have right of passage for three weeks stay here before we will have to forcibly remove you," Jongdae states in a monotone voice, as if having practiced the words for a long time. "The Heiðrún Knight however, can stay however long he pleases, though I'll assume he's bound to you, in which case you are free to take him with you."

The sprite abruptly starts walking, Lu Han following him immediately in silence. Chanyeol hesitates, unsure, but scurries after the two when they don't stop or look back, putting a hand over his heart to calm the beating as he stares at the scenery. This is a place he wouldn't mind staying for a long time in, radiant, with an air of calm and luxury mixing in the air.

Jongdae leads them into a giant wooden cabin, set atop a lake that Chanyeol is sure shouldn't exist this high into the trees, but really, what does he know about the magic of the forest?

They're told to sit and wait while Jongdae heads off to see the Prince, and Chanyeol sits gingerly on the edge of a flowery bench, fiddling with the petals, careful not to break any off. The air feels dewy, constantly on the edge of raining, but the sky is clear, growing steadily darker as the sun disappears.

"This should be fun," Lu Han says next to him, sounding every bit like this _isn't_ going to be fun, and Chanyeol glances over to see him sitting cross-legged on a bed of moss, ears glittering a gold colour, and eyes strangely dead, lacking their usual mischievous sparkle.

Chanyeol isn't sure what to say, so he says nothing, leaving the two to sit in a silence that has become familiar to him, except they aren't in Gaelgorn now. Chanyeol wonders if the future holds many more silences like this, and he buries his face in his arm, stifling a stray yawn, staring out across the lake.

He's in the middle of intently watching a bird skitter across the water like a throwing stone, fascinated by it's neon hues and long curved claws, when Jongdae walks in the room followed by a boy holding a fox.

Lu Han mutters, suddenly close to Chanyeol’s ear, that this is the Prince of Lei, and he better keep his mouth shut.

This Elf is beautiful, with an innocent looking face, and eyes that seem to stab into him. The affair is a much bigger deal than in both Heiðrún and Gaelgorn, the prince draped in exquisite robes made from rare materials, skin like porcelain and long delicate fingers gripping the cloth, the only indication that the prince is nervous.

He bows low, but in a manner that leaves Chanyeol suspicious of his intentions, a bow that seems as real as the mirages of the mist, veiled.

"My name is Baekhyun," The prince says, and Chanyeol is taken aback by his voice, deeper than he expected, with a sultry tone, and the Heiðrún Elf might be smitten, even in a time of desperation like this.

In his arms he holds a fox, small but exotic looking, large deep eyes looking through them, landing on Lu Han, where they end up staying. There's a distaste in his eyes, a recognition. They don't like each other. The sprite from earlier is beside him, also eyeing them curiously and Chanyeol supposes this must be the strangest visit the Lei prince has ever had; the prince of Gaelgorn and a Knight of Heiðrún appearing together and explaining about a prophecy.

They hadn't expected it to go well, all things considering. Chanyeol has vague memories from the cultural section of his training about Lei Elves and he knows they're hidden, withdrawn and mysterious. They're usually described as intelligent and otherworldly, and Chanyeol finds himself silently agreeing with his memory as he takes in the Prince.

He drags a finger self consciously through his locks, and doesn't dare say a word. Chanyeol knows that if he opens his mouth, something ridiculous is likely to come out, and they can't afford to not have Prince Baekhyun agree to his journey.

Chanyeol has a lot of doubts though, looking at Baekhyun, who's seated himself onto the bench across from them, stroking the foxes ears and looking at them expectantly.

"I haven't got all day. If your business is not important I will leave as I see fit," Baekhyun states it simply, and Chanyeol gets the feeling that this is definitely someone who sees themselves as superior, and he can only think of one word.

 

Haughty.

 

"You won't be leaving unless it's with us," Lu Han says calmly, looking well put-together, face emotionless as he addresses Baekhyun. This is not just a random meeting between two Elves to convince one of the two that they must journey to their death in the mist. This is a meeting between two figures of royalty, and two considerably non allied ones at that.

The political system in the Elven kingdoms is a weak one, with citizens bowing beneath the Kings and Queens of the Kingdoms. Heiðrún has a government, a President who wears simple robes and commands the Knights with the Queen watching on, a woman of power but not of authority, her role simply a traditional one.

In Gaelgorn the Royal family roams the streets at will, virtually ignored by the townsfolk as a regular appearance, a familial and yet with the feel of every Elf for their own.

The Lei Kingdom has a distinct feel of natural order. The air is unhurried, magic sifting through the common Elves and let be in it's own environment. The Elves here seem relaxed, though guarded, dropping to their knees at the sound of the royal flute, the Queen being a woman of both power and authority, demanding luxury and worship from those who live in hammocks among the trees.

Baekhyun is someone who has been brought up in this land of luxury being treated with the utmost amount of respect, living his life at the very top, and he looks at them like he thinks they should be kneeling while speaking to him instead of sitting across from him as equals.

Jongdae has less of an arrogant manner, yet still one of authority, hands resting easily in his lap. Chanyeol can see a spark of electricity now and then, a sign that he's ready to be on the attack at any moment. An ambush of power if they toe over the invisible line that's yet to be spoken, but is very surely there.

The fox doesn't seem to take kindly to Lu Han's cryptically worded threat, twitching slightly and sitting up fully, claws curling into the knee of Baekhyun's robes as an anchor.

"Are you meaning to force me to go with you wherever you say this prophecy must bring me?" Baekhyun too looks impassive, impossible to read, and Chanyeol shifts with unease, distracting himself by studying the Prince's gorgeous fingers and trying to not to think about what they would feel like between his lips.

Chanyeol fidgets at his inappropriate thoughts and looks over to Lu Han who seems lost for just a moment, a split second of his High Elf demeanor faltering before nodding slowly.

"That is the plan. How do you think I got this lovely fellow to join me?" Lu Han's smile is rather frightening, and he pats Chanyeol on the shoulder in a good natured manner. Chanyeol attempts to make himself smaller in the leaves and vines of the bench, feeling like some kind of prisoner dragged along with Lu Han. He knows that's exactly what he is, despite Lu Han's bond, despite the shared bread at the Palace of Gaelgorn.

Those without a choice are always considered prisoner to whatever has enslaved them, and Chanyeol is just a tool for Lu Han to use in this journey. Though to look at it another way he supposes is to think that perhaps Lu Han despite following a prophecy and going with the words of the Oracle and of the magic of the Calladron, is seeking out to create something good, whether it be selfish or for the entire land.

To reverse the spell is to send away the mist, and to keep every Kingdom, Elven or otherwise safe, with a foreseeable future. Even if Lu Han's intentions are for himself and his own Kingdom, saving Gaelgorn means saving the entire Calladron, and for that alone Chanyeol thinks that he might not ever fight against this prophecy, or against the fate that had wrapped it's fingers around his wrist and pulled him along.

"This mist isn't just some trick of the light or a rolling fog from the Oceans that will dissipate. It will reach here soon enough, and it is deadly," Lu Han says, drawing his tongue across his teeth - the only indication of any anxiety. "It will kill the children and it will kill your Queen, and it's spreading quickly over the Calladron. Prophecies never lie, and your fate has been written. It's up to you how easily you carry it out."

Chanyeol is slightly impressed with Lu Han's use of words, and the formal yet threatening tone he conveys, much different to the irritated snapping of orders that Chanyeol has gotten used to. Though Chanyeol does wish to hear the wistful and playful voice of Lu Han at home, real smiles coming through in the presence of his younger sister, the princess.

Just another reminder to add to the list of reasons that everyone is a chance in Chanyeol's eyes, nearly human under every layer of protection and ambiguity, stripped away to just becoming a true being. Chanyeol hopes that Baekhyun turns out to be somewhat decent under his attractive and cold façade. His hopes are somewhat slim at this point, and he has to stop himself from wrinkling his nose with some type of distaste when Baekhyun speaks again.

"You've walked in here, an enemy of both Heiðrún and Lei kingdoms, who I must remind you are rightfully allied under the jurisdiction of the old King, and state that you've forced this Heiðrún Elf into some kind of captive journey," Baekhyun begins, and his words are short and clipped, said with a force that Chanyeol is having trouble imagining is really him, with such soft features and lips that should be laughing. "More so, you follow the words of a prophecy, a misuse of magic in the terms of the allied kingdoms. You cannot force me or my sprites to do anything when you've already committed crimes and are in Lei territory."

"You're wrong though," Lu Han responds agitation barely sifting past his teeth. "I have a Bond with this Elf and a Bond cannot be broken even by an allied force. So don't think you can use my companion to try and have me killed. Unless you want to cause a rift in the magical balance and start a war."

Baekhyun's face falls slightly as he seems to realize what Lu Han says, a scowl forming on his face, and Chanyeol wants to frown too because it's not a look that suits him. Chanyeol feels he'd look way better if he smiled naturally, and vows to see it at least once before whatever happens to them happens, be that continuing on, or some kind of Lei induced death.

"I could have you both killed," Baekhyun states, smiling almost smugly as if he's fixed everything, but Lu Han laughs out loud, causing Chanyeol to startle next to him, raising his eyebrows nervously.

"Killing a Heiðrún Knight when you're supposed to be allies. You're ridiculous," Lu Han says, crossing his arms and blowing a tuft of golden hair away from his eyes. "You're going to come with us, under a circumstance or other. You may believe in the old fashioned codes of respecting the Calladron's faerin and order, but a prophecy is a prophecy and they never lie, regardless of your own moral code."

"We're done here for no,." A new voice pipes up from beside Baekhyun. Jongdae is speaking now, standing to his feet, and motioning for the two to stand as well. "We have rooms prepared for you to sleep. We can discuss this further tomorrow once we three have discussed it ourselves. I believe there's no need to bring the Queen into this, but if we have to we will."

“Who's the fox?” Is all Lu Han asks, and Chanyeol can see him eyeing the animal curiously.

Jongdae quirks an eyebrows in Lu Han's direction, unnaturally curled hair bouncing atop his head, and Chanyeol thinks he's about to decline, but the fox is uncurling from where it's been very clearly napping on Baekhyun's lap. It noses Jongdae’s hand, an unspoken signal and the sprite sighs and nods.

"This is Minseok," He says, tilting his chin in the Fox's direction. "Of the official Royal guard. You're to be dismissed now."

Though Jongdae is obviously attempting to come off as intimidating, something about his curved lips and dancing eyes brings a feeling of calm into Chanyeol and he stands up abruptly from his seat, dusting off his trousers and yet again running a nervous hand through his hair.

Chanyeol can feel the now silent Prince's eyes on him, and he can't stay still, fidgeting under a gaze that seems too heavy for one observing his enemy's prisoner. Chanyeol refuses to look at Baekhyun, flustered enough by the day's events and by his current state of mind, and he leans against the wall for support. He keeps his eyes trained on Lu Han, waiting for him to come to a decision about whether or not he's going to defy Jongdae's sudden orders.

"Show us to our room then, Jongdae," Lu Han says brightly, a smirk on his lips, and for a brief heartbeat one would think he could actually be flirting, but Chanyeol already has a grasp of the Elf, already knows him better than to think that, and feels a shudder of unease at his expression. Lu Han is up to something and Chanyeol isn't sure he wants to find out.

Once they reach their room - if one could call an open concept tree house a room-  Lu Han turns to Chanyeol and starts laughing, confusing the already agitated Elf.

"What's so funny?" Chanyeol says weakly, "They won't come with us."

"They will soon enough," Lu Han replies, eyes still dancing with laughter, "They're a funny group. They just need persuading."

"Is that why you're laughing?" Chanyeol asks frowning, not understanding Lu Han's sudden change of mood and attitude. "I don't understand what's so funny."

"You're funny," Lu Han exclaims, flopping down on a bed that might actually be made from leaves and smiling warmly at Chanyeol. "I'm only worried about one thing and that's time."

"Time?"

"Mhm yes time," Lu Han says, and he's staring off into the forest, laughter dying, looking not calm but something Chanyeol can't read. "I want to leave before the mist gets here. This isn't a safe place to stay if the wolves come. Or something worse."

"Worse?" Chanyeol squeaks, voice uncharacteristically high. "What could possibly be worse than giant wolves."

"Sirens, pixies, finrar."

"What the hell is a finrar?" Chanyeol gulps, freaked out by the foreign word, shuddering to himself as images of giant gruesome beasts with long fangs or tusks or claws that go on for miles or-

“They look like small squirrels except-”

“Squirrels?” Chanyeol interrupts disbelievingly. “How is a squirrel dangerous?”

“Maybe if you didn’t talk over me I could finish my sentence,” Lu Han snarls, giving him a dirty look that has Chanyeol scooting back a bit. The other Elf's mood swings are making him nervous and he gulps apologetically.

"Sorry," He says, voice sounding tired, and Lu Han gives him a long measured look before continuing.

"They look like small squirrels except they're extremely poisonous, even to the touch," Lu Han explains, rolling over onto his stomach and resting his head in his arms, yawning loudly. "One little bit of contact and poof! Dead Chanyeol."

The nonchalant way he says it scares Chanyeol, though he tries to look brave, settling down onto his own leafy bed, letting out a sigh at it's softness. He copies Lu Han and lays down on his stomach, staring out into the night and through the forest foliage, taking comfort in the mountains in the distance; _his_ mountains.

Lu Han looks sad now, following Chanyeol's gaze and letting out a long breath, sitting up and ruffling his own hair distressingly. He looks like he wants to say something, wants to let something out, but he doesn't, and they lapse into yet another of their strange silences.

Chanyeol is dozing off, eyes drooping and glittering wisps of colour in the air fading out of his vision as he lets himself get comfortable, throwing an arm under his head and finding the squishiest spot to make his home in.

A quiet voice next to him snaps him back awake though, and he looks over at Lu Han through a haze of sleep, blinking rapidly.

"What?" He says eloquently, covering a yawn with his fist and studying Lu Han, who looks almost dejected, an emotion Chanyeol had begun to think the Elf didn't possess.

"From my calculations the mist has probably completely covered Gaelgorn by now," Lu Han murmurs, sounding like he's talking more to him than to Chanyeol. "I can't say much for the townsfolk but my Mother and sister are deep in the palace. They should be safe, but my Mother is dying anyways and-"

"The mist can't get into the mountain right?"

"I don't think so," Lu Han says quietly, hugging his knees and gazing out into the water of the lake, glistening and beautiful under the moonlight, wisps of hazy reds and purples dancing over top. "But you never know. It won't just be me losing a parent. My kingdom will lose a Queen, and if my sister dies, a Princess, and then if I die we won't even have a royal family."

"I'm sorry." Chanyeol says, looking down. "I can't relate to royalty, but losing a parent is difficult."

"What would you know about that?" Lu Han says, and maybe he doesn't mean, maybe he's just in a bad mood, but something twitches up, angry and dark in Chanyeol and he glares at the Elf.

 

"I don't even have parents," Chanyeol snaps at him, not caring about their situation, or the disrupting the quiet atmosphere of the kingdom, a bird shrieking as it flies into the night air. "Why do you think I don't even have a Mother's Prayer?"

"You don't have-" Lu Han starts and pauses, and for once looks at a loss for words, and Chanyeol almost feels guilty for snapping at him, almost. "Why didn't you say anything when we were talking about it?"

"Considering our … circumstances you're not the first person I would trust," Chanyeol says shortly, crossing his arms and sighing at Lu Han. "So I shut up like the prisoner I am."

"You're not-"

"I am," Chanyeol interrupts, shrugging his shoulders and looking back over the lake. "I resigned myself to it, it's okay."

"You were at first but not anymore." Lu Han mutters darkly, and he really does guilty, gripping his shoulders and staring at Chanyeol so intensely he feels his skin crawl. "You can leave whenever you like, I wouldn't stop you."

"Ah," Chanyeol says, before bursting into laughter. The hollow kind that hold no mirth, empty and without reason. "It's kind of impossible now isn't it?"

"A little," Lu Han says, rising to his feet and walking towards the door of their temporary room. "I'm sorry about that, but I'm going for a walk."

Chanyeol starts, looking up at him in confusion just in time to notice Lu Han's absence, and he lays back down on the bed nervously, staring up at the ceiling and wishing he could see stars, could see The Mother's Prayer above Lu Han's bed and feel somewhat loved.

He feels as if they've just fought, though they barely even spoke, and he curses himself for having trouble falling asleep, even here somewhere so gorgeous and peaceful. Chanyeol needs to rest, need to get energy because they're leaving soon whether he likes it or not, into something he might not walk out of, might not get a warm bed to sleep on ever again.

Chanyeol stays awake, lying on his side and picking at the plant like material of the bed, worrying about everything, everyone, every little thing. The air feels lighter now at night, but it feels wet, and he can see it now, the mist, heavy and brooding, blocking the mountains from sight. Far away, yet so close to them, looming and dangerous.

He knows they have to get Baekhyun to come with them or else they'll be dead, the prophecy undone and ruined. Chanyeol has never seen what happens when something like that is broken, but he doesn't want to find out either.

Baekhyun had been pretty firm in his answer, had been almost cold, calculating, and Chanyeol wonders how to get through to him. His mind catches on Jongdae, the mysterious but amiable sprite, with fingers of electricity and a sharp mind. He seems to understand what this prophecy is, seems nearly on their side, but one can never know.

One thing Chanyeol knows from his training, from the days spent napping in class is that sprites are intensely loyal to who they serve, and it's going to take a lot to get Jongdae on their side. He's still thinking of how to convince Jongdae to convince Baekhyun when Lu Han walks back in, looking wearied and tired, laying down opposite him, eyes closed and ears drooping, something he's never seen from the Elf before.

Lu Han opens his eyes and jumps in surprise when their gazes lock, propping himself up on his elbows and opens his mouth to speak. He closes it right away, looking unsure of what to say, but Chanyeol waves a hand at him.

"It's okay," He says, briefly worrying whether or not Lu Han even cares about that, but the look of relief on Lu Han's face causes it to subside, and he runs a hand through his hair.

"I just get touchy about my parents. They died on a peacekeeping mission to Gaelgorn when I was just two during the war so I just-"

“Okay I get it,” Lu Han says briskly, effectively stopping Chanyeol’s explanation. The Elf shakes his head. “We can discuss later. We need to figure out what to say to the Prince tomorrow.”

“Can we just kidnap him, I mean it worked pretty well for me,” Chanyeol suggests shrugging. He’s a little put out with Lu Han cutting him off, but he suspects the mention of Gaelgorn being at fault had been the trigger, not missing the spark in his eyes.

“If it comes down to it we will, but those sprites are sketchy,” Lu Han says, biting on his fingers in thought, staring holes into the wooden paneled wall.

“I thought there was only one sprite,” Chanyeol says slowly, trying to rack his brain for another sprite, coming up with nothing. “What do you mean sprites?”

“The fox,” Lu Han says, as if it’s the simplest thing in the world. “He’s a hybrid. A shifter and a sprite. He also has Gaelgorn faerin seeping out of him. It’s curious.”

Chanyeol had been curious about the fox, had figured it was more human than animal, and he wonders if they have to get through to Baekhyun’s royal guard before getting through to Baekhyun himself.

“So we need to convince them before convincing the Prince?” Chanyeol asks, dragging his tongue across his lips nervously. The idea sounds difficult, but Jongdae seems nice enough.

“Yes,” Lu Han says, flopping over onto his back and kicking his legs up like a small child, overly cheerful for someone in a situation that seems impossible, and Chanyeol wants to ask a million questions why, but the Elf shushes him, finger to his lips, voice dropping down to a whisper. "Sleep Heiðrún Knight, we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow."

Chanyeol does sleep, restlessly and in short bursts, waking up from his now usual nightmares, with no memory of them, but a creeping feeling of foreboding in his heart, mind screaming warnings at him that he can't understand, vision blurry with images of a tall robed creature whispering to a beautiful siren.

It's nonsense to awake Chanyeol, who yawns and rolls over, squinting at the dazzling morning rays of sunlight reflecting off the water of the lake, ears twitching at the bells, loud and clanging, chasing off the birds in a flurry of noise and feathers. He doesn't know what these bells mean, looking questioningly at Lu Han, who's sitting up, looking younger and less terrifying than he actually is, fingers delicately rubbing at red rimmed eyes.

Chanyeol isn't the only one who slept badly it seems, and it's with heavy limbs and pounding temples that they leave the room, Chanyeol causelessly following Lu Han to their destination. The day holds another talk, Lu Han glaring at Jongdae with determination, even with his mouth full of honey bread and his clothes wrinkled.

"Did you think about it?" Lu Han asks, licking the honey from his lips, and tilting his head in Jongdae's direction, looking like a lazy cat, comfortable and confident, though Chanyeol knows he's not.

"Can you wait until breakfast is over to start harassing me about this?" Is Jongdae's snarky response, before the sprite leans over the table and plucks the last piece of Lu Han's bread from the cloth, munching on it happily.

"Did I say you could do that?" Lu Han says coolly, ears twitching with discontent, but Jongdae only laughs, shrill and loud, finishing the bread and sneering at Lu Han.

"Hey now," He says, leaning back in his chair and looking just as much of a lazy cat as Lu Han mere minutes earlier. "Aren't you supposed to be getting on my good side? Get me before you get the Prince and all that?"

Lu Han actually scowls, giving Jongdae a dirty look, exhaling sharply and getting up from the table, flicking a finger towards the exit.

"Can we get started please. I'd like to talk to someone of more authority thank you," He says through gritted teeth, and Chanyeol hovers behind him, chewing on the inside of his cheek, a nervous habit picked up from childhood.

Lu Han and Jongdae are playing a game, dancing around each other to see who messes up first, who gives the first sign of weakness, and Chanyeol really can't tell who's winning, watching Jongdae huff and speak in an airy voice.

"The Prince does nothing without me or Minseok's approval as his royal guards and advisers," Jongdae says, lips twitching into a victorious smirk that has Lu Han's eyebrows raising slightly.

"In the end it is his decision whether or not he has your approval or not," Lu Han says, matching Jongdae's pace as they walk briskly down an outdoor hallway, surrounded by vines that drape over the edge. Chanyeol gets distracted by the view, trailing far behind them and losing track of the conversation. He pauses near the middle, breath catching in his lungs at the pure beauty of this kingdom, small animals darting through the trees and winged faeries with soft hair following around the many Elves of Lei.

It has a sense of calm, a sense of serenity. No one seems in a hurry, bothered by nothing and Chanyeol could live here forever, drinking in the scenery and the faerin tingling through the vines and into his fingertips, smelling of fresh lilacs and wine.

"Why are you here alone, shouldn't you be waiting in the conference room with the other one?" An unfamiliar voice, crisp and sharp, but soft around the edges interrupts Chanyeol's reverie, and he spins on the spot to see a shorter sprite accompanied by The Prince, looking unamused.

The sprite looks a bit like a forest creature, eyes curved like that of a cat or a fox's, lithe but toned, hair a burnt orange. He looks familiar, but Chanyeol can't place him, blushing out of embarrassment and fear when he realizes Lu Han and Jongdae are long gone, and he tugs at the waist of his shirt uncomfortably.

"I got distracted," Chanyeol mutters, stepping forward and then stepping back, hesitant in his movements, opting to stand still, waiting for the sprite and The Prince to move. He avoids looking at The Prince, keeping his eyes on the intimidating sprite who snickers at him, eyes looking past him and out at the sparkling waterfalls and fluttering wings of butterflies.

"Understandable," The sprite says, walking forward and motioning for Chanyeol to follow them, not looking back as he speaks, and Chanyeol awkwardly walks behind Baekhyun, trying not to focus on his dark blue robes or alluring features. "I will have to ask you not do it again. You're not permitted to walk around here as you please, especially unguarded, and there are consequences."

"Y-yes," Chanyeol agrees readily, hands still tugging at his shirt as he walks. This is new, this whole being nervous of everyone around him, worrying about whether they could kill him any second, despite his height, despite his status.

Chanyeol isn't weak by any means, isn't vulnerable or shy, but he is clumsy, and he isn't brave, not ready to fight these sprites that are armed and skilled, ready to kill anything that touches their Prince.

The Prince who is currently eyeing him, face a strange mix of curiosity and disdain. Chanyeol falters in his steps, locking eyes with Baekhyun out of the corner of his eye, and hating himself for the way his skin crawls with something that isn't fear.

It isn't the time for Chanyeol to be attracted to someone, let alone a condescending Prince who may or may not be even coming with them, who may or may not end up dead at some point along with Chanyeol himself.

It's difficult though, and when Chanyeol sheepishly sits down beside Lu Han on the same mossy bench from the day before he finds himself staring, watching the way Baekhyun's eyes narrow, and the way he licks his lips briefly, nervously before talking.

The thing is, the Prince is _hot_ and Chanyeol can feel a low stir of attraction making it's way through him, uninvited and fast.

 

 

 

☁

Thankfully, over the next few days of Lu Han pestering Jongdae and annoying Minseok, no one notices Chanyeol's inner confusion. Baekhyun is as cold as ever, deadpan replies and insistent answers, and Chanyeol can tell the Prince with his snobbish attitude has a very thin line of patience, and that line is being crossed.

Things are tense, and Chanyeol has barely said a word, following Lu Han wordlessly like a pet, and staying wordless even when they return to their room, worrying about upsetting the agitated Elf.

The day Lu Han has been dreading comes too early, before their three weeks is up, and before Baekhyun is truly resigned and ready.

It's Chanyeol who notices it, waking up from a rather violent nightmare, panting and sweating, eyes squinting out into the early morning haze. Wait, haze?

He sits up abruptly, breath coming in short gasps as the realization hits him. No morning sunlight is twinkling off the blues of the lake, no birds chirp, and Chanyeol feels damp, blanketed in mist.

He nearly choked on his own saliva as he shakes Lu Han awake, tugging harshly on hair when Lu Han grumbles and buries his face in the bed.

"What the fuck Chanyeol." Lu Han snarls, sitting him a dirty look, hands reaching behind for his dagger. Some things never change, but Chanyeol doesn't have time for that, jabbing a panicky finger at the canopy balcony, relieved when Lu Han finally notices the heavy rolling fog, and the lack of colours.

Lei had been beautiful yesterday, but today it looks dead, bay leaves turning an ashy gray and faeries hiding in their hammocks, tiny sharp teeth bared and claws drawn.

It's Minseok who runs into the room, snarling and vicious, tail puffed up in fear and ears laid back across his head. He transforms quickly, looking just as ruffled as a sprite, breathing harshly and addressing Lu Han.

"Your point is made, Gaelgorn," He spits out, a mix of fury and fear running in his gaze, beckoning for them to follow him. "There are pixies everywhere and the children are danger. Baekhyun refuses to leave but I've convinced him the remaining guards will be enough to protect the Queen and get everyone into the lower shelters."

"Lower shelters?" Lu Han asks, fingers tightening around Chanyeol's wrist, dragging the frozen Elf behind him and only letting go once they've turned a sharp corner onto a rickety tree bridge they've never been on.

"Emergency holds, inside the tree trunks," Minseok explains, and even when not in fox form he exhibits animal like reflexes, head spinning around at every tiny noise. "The elders want Baekhyun to leave. Say they remember the tales and know what's behind this ambush."

“Amphaerie.”

The two in front of Chanyeol spin around to face him in confusion the second the words leave his mouth, Minseok giving him a dark look that Chanyeol doesn’t understand, putting a hand over his mouth and creasing his eyebrows.

“How do you know that word?” Minseok asks accusingly, and Chanyeol sputters, trying to rack his brain for where it had come from, but he doesn’t know, feeling just as confused as Minseok sounds. He says nothing, blinking at Lu Han for support, but Lu Han looks lost, like he’s never heard the word before.

"I don't remember," Chanyeol responds truthfully, studying the blurry surroundings, willing the images and thoughts of his dreams to come to his conscious memory. He's sure that's where the word surfaced from. 

They keep walking, slower now, Minseok hanging back and looking extremely suspicious of Chanyeol, though he has no idea why.

"The elders said that they've been erased from history. It wouldn't make sense for you to know them," Minseok says into the silence of the eerie bridge, leading them into a tunnel through a giant tree trunk and down a winding flight of stairs. This must be the lower shelters, Chanyeol thinks, running a hand along the soft, damp inner wood.

It's while they're still walking down the stairs that Chanyeol sees a drop of water fall from the stairs above and land with a soft echoing splash on the wet ground, and it hits him. The tall creatures from his dreams, glowing red eyes, and overly long fingers, beautiful but terrifying, speaking strange tongues and tearing the heart out of a body.

"They're tall and beautiful right?" Chanyeol tries, shaking at the image of the flesh eating beings, jumping when another drop hits the ground, making him think of grimy tunnels and pitch black corridors. "They're- they're really pretty but sometimes they look horrible, and they speak ancient Elvish."

Minseok nods back at him, face ashen and serious, "That's what the elders have told me also. But they don't know much aside from that these things create mist and control the creatures in it," The sprite pauses, glancing at Lu Han and then at Chanyeol. "But why would you "know of them?

"I-I don't know." Chanyeol says defeated, shoulders slumping as he remembers the countless nightmares, and the feelings of intense terror and something more, something _real_. "I thought they were just stress nightmares because of my situation, but does this mean they're real?"

They slow down to allow Minseok to lead, leaving Chanyeol in the back once again to feel confused and scared. Minseok doesn't say anything else, bringing them without words to a small room deep within the tangle of branches. Chanyeol doesn't want to be deep indoors again, doesn't want to feel trapped, but they have no choice as they once again sit down across from Baekhyun, who for once looks visibly jittery, holding onto Jongdae's shoulder for dear life and whispering in a hushed tone about something.

Baekhyun doesn't look up until Lu Han clears his throat pointedly, legs crossed and fingers interlocked, and the change is sudden, from Lu Han to Prince Lu Han, important and intimidating, ready to get the answer he wants.

Baekhyun doesn't look at Lu Han right away though, eyes dragging up and down Chanyeol's entire body, as if taking him in for the first time, and Chanyeol wants to squirm, snapping his mouth shut from where it had been hanging open dramatically. He almost thinks he sees the ghost of a smile on Baekhyun's lips before the Lei Prince is turning to Lu Han, exhaling deeply and looking completely exhausted.

"We'll go." Baekhyun says, sounding none too happy about the prospect, eyes bloodshot from lack of sleep, and fingers twitching anxiously. "As long as I can bring my sprites, and I can have the rest of the day to ensure the safety of the Queen and my people inside the shelters."

"Of cours,." Lu Han says amiably, but Chanyeol catches the relief evident on his subtle features. "On one condition."

"Condition?" Baekhyun says, looking at Lu Han disbelievingly. "I hardly believe you should be allowed to be throwing out conditions when I've let you stay here and am finally agreeing to this ridiculous thing."

"Oh but you do!" Lu Han says cheerfully, standing up and grabbing Minseok's hand, startling the sprite who yanks his hand back to no avail, trapped in Lu Han's strong grip. "We need to do a bond. Standard procedure really, keep us from killing each other."

Lu Han turns to Minseok, leaning down and Chanyeol almost thinks he's going to kiss him until Lu Han pulls back, dropping Minseok's hand and addressing him directly.

"You're cute. You can go first," Lu Han says, this time offering his own hand out to Minseok, who looks at him dubiously. "Once the bond is performed it stops me from intentionally harming any of you, and stops any of you from intentionally leaving the group at any point."

"Me and Chanyeol have a bond and we're just the loveliest of friends, don't you want one too?" Lu Han's voice grows suddenly serious and he turns to Baekhyun. "You don't have a choice. We either do the bond or your sprites stay here to rot."

"You're so wonderful to do business with." Baekhyun cuts out sarcastically, rolling up his sleeves and practically shoving a hand in Lu Han's face. "Get it over with pretty boy."

"Who are you calling pretty boy?" Lu Han says, sounding offended, but takes Baekhyun's hand anyway, laughing softly at the Lei Prince's initial reaction of jerking away when the golden tendrils of faerin dance up his arms and into his veins. "It's okay though. If you break the bond I've heard that humans actually have places where they lock up dogs without owners."

"You'll be in the cell next to me," Baekhyun spits out, snapping his arm back as if he's been poisoned and sitting down on the bench next to Chanyeol with a loud huff, nose in the air. He's too close and Chanyeol unconsciously leans into the armrest, cringing at the feel of wet moss on his arm.

"Can you move over?" Chanyeol asks quietly, blush immediately rising to his cheeks at Baekhyun's insulted reaction. He's made one bad impression after the other, and he wants to sink into the moss and never come out. To his surprise Baekhyun does move over, scooting down to the other side of the bench quickly, fixing him with a look of disdain, one that Chanyeol takes in stride, grinning sheepishly.

The other three don't notice the exchange, too busy doing bond things, and Chanyeol let's out the breath he's been holding when Jongdae stands in front of them and announces that they're ready to leave.

It's confusing how quickly things have changed, like the mist is gently pushing them into action, but Chanyeol has a sneaking suspicion that it's Jongdae who made the decision. The sprite is smart and level-headed, something that Baekhyun definitely is not.

 

 

 

☁

 

They leave by floating down on the same type of leaf they rose up into the Kingdom of Lei on, Lu Han once again clinging to Chanyeol like a scared cat, ignoring Jongdae's snickering in the background.

Baekhyun pauses right at the ledge, turning back and squinting into the cloudy air, and for just a second he looks scared, features looking the opposite of patronizing, but his impassiveness is back within seconds, leaving Chanyeol to think he's imagined it. He climbs onto the leaf almost delicately, yawning into his hand and waving his arms, motioning for Jongdae to start their descent.

"Jongdae will be leading us since he knows the forests between here and Karhaerin well, but stay on guard and be prepared," Minseok says, voice carrying, even through the mist, eyes sharp as he surveys the group and their surroundings. "Humans aren't the most welcoming of creatures, especially in the capital city and will most likely drag us to the Empress for questioning, but luckily with a prophecy as vague as Lu Han's, we just need to find the first sorcerer dumb enough to go on a suicide mission."

"At least the sorcerers will take it seriously unlike Lei Royalty. They'll know what an Amphaerie is," Lu Han responds, lips quirking into a half smirk, ignoring Baekhyun's snarl of anger. "The mist is moving quickly again, faster than when me and Chanyeol travelled through it and we may not be able to stay ahead of it, so we need to start moving."

It's as if Lu Han can tell the future, because the mist rolls in ten minutes into travel, falling around them like a living entity and not a weather phenomenon, and Chanyeol shivers, unsure of who to walk with, eventually trotting to catch up with Lu Han.

The want to stick closer to Lu Han is something Chanyeol never expected himself having a need for, but he does just that, keeping pace with him, and resisting the urge to hold his hand for support as images of a giant wolf skim through his mind, teeth dripping saliva and claws raking across his chest.

The mist seems quiet though, in a different sense than before. It's peaceful almost, hearing the leaves crunch under their feet and the faint rustling of leaves above them. Or it would be peaceful if Baekhyun would keep his mouth shut.

He learns quickly just how difficult Baekhyun is. Within an hour of setting off, having barely left Lei, the complaining starts.

First it’s Baekhyun’s robes, catching on bushes, though he refuses to take them off; pride stopping him.

Then it’s the weather.

“This stupid mist makes my body weird., Baekhyun whines, smudging his eye make up when he wipes sweat from his forehead. “First I’m too hot, then I’m too cold.”

“Shut the fuck up and deal with it,” Is the short and snappy reply Baekhyun receives from a tired and rumpled Lu Han, who looks nothing short of murderous.

Baekhyun does quiet for a while, clinging to Minseok’s arm and scowling. The normally reserved sprite makes eye contact with Jongdae and dramatically rolls his eyes, throwing all three sprites into a fit of giggles. Apparently a whining and pitiful prince is a normal occurrance. That or they’re all just assholes who find happiness in Baekhyun’s despair.

Chanyeol eventually find out it’s both, though the Sprites display an immense loyalty to him.

Baekhyun is beautiful though, despite his attitude and whining, and Chanyeol finds himself staring more often than not, something that no one really seems to notice, too caught up in their own thoughts. Or in Lu Han’s case, too caught up in being overly cautious of the environment, always on the look-out.

The attention is on Jongdae though, leading the way and looking important, navigating accurately and swiftly even with their surroundings muted and vision next to nothing. The sprite radiates energy, using some kind of electric echolocation to gain his bearings, whispering into Minseok’s ear and giving the other sprite instructions.

Minseok is back into his fox from, jumping from Jongdae to the ground, to sitting on tree stumps and sniffing the air. It’s clear the sprites are at home here, and Chanyeol relaxes, a relieved smile breaking out on his face at the thought that they’re making progress, going to get the last piece of the prophecy.

 

 

 

 

 

\---  Among the trees. In between Lei and Thelgard  \---

 

Baekhyun may have never been in the forest, but Jongdae has. The Sprite feels at home amongst the tall trees with their oversized leaves, colours of purple, red and green. This part of the journey is the easiest according to Lu Han; the density of the mist isn’t bad, and they don’t have to travel far to reach Karhaerin City. Even with the mist at their backs and the sunlight dim through the trees, no longer shining through the branches like it once did, they walk at a slow pace.

They need to save their energy. Thelgard may only give them one night of rest, and the prophecy takes them straight through to the great forest to the marshlands next, somewhere where they may not get any rest at all, let alone what they deserve.

Baekhyun of course, isn’t pleased by the mossy forest floor, or the dewy water dripping down from overhead, but Minseok seems to adore it, yipping excitedly as he darts from ground to branches, scrambling up Jongdae’s robes and nuzzling his ear affectionately. Minseok has always been more amiable as a fox, less shy and without his biting tongue, though when in the presence of Baekhyun he still keeps his biting teeth.

Jongdae walks slightly in front of the group, turning back to watch Lu Han, the Gaelgorn Prince curiously. He wants to know about this mysterious Elf with the soft voice that displays nothing soft about the words it conveys. Chanyeol, Lu Han’s companion - or prisoner, Jongdae still isn’t entirely sure - seems a lot more docile, tall, with overly pointed ears, and longer hair. His words do not match his voice, shy and unsure for someone with a tone so deep.

Jongdae feels somewhat like his life has been flipped around, but he’s resigned to his fate, has been trained to stay by Baekhyun’s side for nearly his whole life. He almost doesn’t want to leave the forest, doesn’t want to stray away from the green that makes him feel at home, but Jongdae is a professional.

He looks forward to arriving at the human city, a place he’s never been, but a place Lu Han tells them has some of the information they’re looking for. City of sorcerers and industrial factories, ones who know the great history of the land without blemishes, without the gaping holes burned from memory by the elusive Elven ancients.

Information about the _Amphaerie_ terrifying creatures that were thought to have been wiped completely extinct, the only beings capable of creating a mist like this, and of bringing their brand of black energy down across the Calla and throughout the entire land.

Minseok is perching on Jongdae’s shoulder now, nipping playfully at his ears and Jongdae snaps at him jokingly with no malice in his voice.

“Minseok is you weren’t a fox right now I would toss you into that creek,” Is his threat to the small fox, which only earns him a hit in the face from a bushy tail, and he snarls in annoyance, tossing Minseok roughly onto the ground. “You can walk like everyone you brat.”

This isn’t the only bickering going on during this first leg of a long line of travel, Lu Han turning around from his conversation with Chanyeol ever so often to snap at Baekhyun, looking close to tearing him apart, only to be stopped by a low growl from Minseok.

Lu Han is a little wary of Minseok, jumping out of the way when the fox runs over to where he’s walking, and it pleases Jongdae to see someone so composed and collected shriek like a small child.

"I thought he was a finrar," Lu Han snaps defensively, looking to Chanyeol for support, but receiving none. Chanyeol just grins, patting Lu Han on the shoulder, and Jongdae laughs a little, feeling weirdly optimistic as the forest begins to thin, and the mist begins to look less intimidating, visibility rising with the sun.

The forest gives way to a dusty sand road, boarded on each side by large fields, and Jongdae hesitates, looking back to Lu Han for help, but he finds the Elf arguing with Chanyeol instead, looking every bit like a put out child.

This is new, Jongdae thinks, squatting at the side of the road and tugging at a fluffy plant that looks like a weed. He gazes across the field, seeing nothing past a few rows of plants. It makes him nervous, being out in the open like this in the mist, but it seems to be clearing the further down this road they walk, disappearing behind them like a giant cloud of despair, making Jongdae unconsciously pick up his pace, scooping Minseok off the ground for moral support.

Lu Han strides up beside him, absent of Chanyeol, eyes glittering a strange shade of gold and silver. He doesn't look happy, scanning the area around them, looking for something that he obviously can't find.

"We're reaching the border soon," Baekhyun pipes up from a bit behind them, holding the bottom of his robes in his fingers and dusting off the sand with a look of disgust on his face. Chanyeol is hovering awkwardly next to him, face a mixture of curiosity, dislike and something else that Jongdae files away in his brain to remember later.

"The border patrol should abide to our requests to see The Empress easily," Lu Han comments, mostly to Jongdae and Minseok, giving no indication that he's even heard Baekhyun, letting out a small "aha!" when he sees a looming fence. It looks at least ten feet high, created from twisted metal, and Jongdae can _smell_ the stench of alchemy in the air when a towering gate screeches with age, lifting slowly to reveal two humans, dressed in simple clothes but carrying weapons that bare the Thelgard emblem.

They're in human territory now and Jongdae's job as guide is over. He floats around Lu Han and Baekhyun briefly, but hangs back, telling Chanyeol to go forward with them and use his status as extra, just in case.

It goes smoothly, Lu Han and the guards conversation lasting barely a minute, and he returns to the group to announce that they'll be taken into Karhaerin via trolley and sent to the Temple of Karhaera.

"We'll be greeted by a man named Yixing and a woman named Krystal," Lu Han explains as they stand awkwardly by the gate, Minseok's eyes staying cautiously on the guards, laced with distrust. "We are to treat them with utmost respect."

Lu Han says the last part directly to Baekhyun, giving him a long fixed stare, that Baekhyun returns with a sneer.

"Don't worry. I'll behave," Baekhyun says, voice mild, nearly sing song as he squints in the now bright sunlight. He looks like he's about to say something else, but Chanyeol suddenly swoops in, grinning brightly and looking kind of creepy.

"We're going to be on our way to the real journey soon," Chanyeol says, and he makes it sound like the best thing ever, like a happy family trip, and Jongdae bites back laughter at the confusing Elf. His mood seems to be heightened now, natural cheerfulness seeping in, confidence growing.

 

 

 

 

 

\---  The great city.  \---

 

There’s something military like about Thelgard. Officials wearing grey give them a head-to-toe search, faces staying impassive and stony, a certain quality about them that makes Chanyeol want to shiver. They aren’t beautiful or delicate like the creatures of the forest, like all the other kingdoms. Everything here seems to be made of stone, tall and majestic, with pillars and prison-like windows. Chanyeol feels uneasy, inching closer to Lu Han as they board a trolley cart, pulled by horses.

They’re being led like prisoners regardless of the royal status of two among them, in with the hay piles, scratchy and damp, virtually ignored by the driver. Chanyeol sighs, leaning against the wooden wall of the cart, and his apprehension must be showing because Lu Han gives him an awkward pat on the head, a laughable attempt at consoling him and so very Lu Han that he can’t help but grin slightly.

There’s a distinct lack of magic in the air, and it feels dreary to Chanyeol, not used to seeing only stone and concrete and wood, almost latches onto a small tree by the side of the road that exhibits the slightest bit of natural faerin, suppressing a shiver when it’s gone in a flash.

The concrete roads and industrial towers, spewing smoke and harmful chemicals have washed the faerin from the Earth, drained by beings that have no natural magic in their blood, and it sends a spike of fear through Chanyeol.

Lu Han looks generally unaffected, but he always does, glancing over to Chanyeol, and only his eyes shows signs of worry, flashing dark gold before returning to their regular chocolate colour. He leans over the edge of the rickety cart, observing the people walking by them. A child stops and gapes at Lu Han, tugging on her Mother’s coat and loudly saying, “Look a fairy! Isn’t he pretty?”

Lu Han’s eyes narrow at that, and Chanyeol has to stop a giggle from escaping when the Elf sits back down with a huff, muttering something about Elves being manly and not pretty at all.

It confuses Chanyeol, the abundance of free will and lack of proper order here, people of all social classes mingling and running free, paying the cart full of foreign creatures no mind as they go about their tasks. The chaos seems minimal and yet there is a distinct lack of conformity.

Chanyeol feels his usual need to rattle off questions to Lu Han, but the other Elf looks tired now, shoulders dropping and eyes glazing over as he watches the side streets, so Chanyeol refrains, shifting around in the awkward silence between the group.

He glances at Jongdae, curled up between Minseok’s paws in his petite form, a size shifting ability native only to sprites, looking much more fairy like than Lu Han, small and delicate, lips curling into a smile even while asleep. The fox is awake though, ears swiveling back and forth, nose scrunching up at the unfamiliar and unwelcomed smells, tail curling around himself protectively.

Chanyeol is still shocked at how different Minseok looks as a fox than a sprite, sharp features and deep intuitive eyes, becoming soft and intelligent, bushy tail fluffing up in annoyance on more than one occasion. He likes Minseok, feels safer with the hybrid near them, making up for the unbalanced skill set of their group.

His gaze falls onto Baekhyun, heart thumping traitorously when he finds Baekhyun already watching him, eyes boring into him, heavy and guarded. Chanyeol holds his gaze, counting the seconds until Baekhyun blinks, looking away and at the sky, uncharacteristically silent.

It’s strange for the Lei Elf to not be constantly complaining, and Chanyeol almost wishes he would just to fill up the fear in his heart with something he can argue with, something Lu Han can snap at instead of looking sleepy and vulnerable next to him.

But Lu Han doesn’t have much longer to be in that state because soon they’re pulling up to a building that looks older than the rest, looming over them like a temple of Zafkra, the stone wearing away but staying strong.

An official walks up the cart, ordering them out and Jongdae returns to regular size with a crackling noise, picking Minseok up carefully in his arms and patting his nose condescendingly, grinning when the fox growls threateningly.

“We’re going to have to ask that the shifter regain human form as per security regulations,” An expressionless official states, coming to a stop and crossing his arms, waiting for Minseok to shift, which he does reluctantly, hopping out of Jongdae’s arms and also returning his regular form with a more frigid crackle. He looks rumpled and pissed off, almost cute with his cheeks puffing out and his eyes wider than usual.

They're led inside, and Chanyeol is startled by how _homey_ it looks, lanterns lit with flame, lavishly carpeted. It looks more like a large house on the inside, completely different from the dreary looking exterior, and Chanyeol feels strangely calm here, less on edge.

They're greeted by a taller woman with an icy look in her eye, skin glinting with the kind of magic residue that makes Chanyeol's skin crawl. She doesn't say a word to them, taking them down the hallway, stopping in front of a small, non descript door.

"You can enter through here. Empress Nana and her Royal consort are waiting inside." The woman says, and her voice doesn't match her face, higher and more innocent than Chanyeol expects it to be. "I'll assume your business is about the impending threat of the mists, and I can tell you that you'll be openly received and the consort has already volunteered to be of any assistance he can, be it information or magic."

She bows low, dark hair falling into her face, and opens the door, waving them inside and disappearing down the hallway without waiting for an answer. Lu Han goes in first, followed by Baekhyun, but Chanyeol hesitates, unsure if he's allowed in, but Jongdae gives him a light push.

"You go in too. You represent Heiðrún in this." Jongdae says quietly. "Me and Minseok will wait out here."

The Empress is recognizable right away, tall and graceful in appearance, with long hair that reaches her waist and high defined cheekbones. She's intimidating, radiating a dark magic, one that has been forbidden in the Elven Kingdoms for lifetimes.

"A necromancer," Lu Han mutters beside Chanyeol, more to himself than anything. He looks apprehensive, and almost a little nervous, but Chanyeol's attention is falling on the man beside the Empress. He's cute, with shaped eyes and perfectly styled hair. Standing next to the Empress, Chanyeol can taste a different brand of magic on him, pure and untainted, and he really hopes that's who's coming with them.

"Welcome to Karhaerin. My name is Nana." The Empress says, sitting behind an ornately decorated desk and crossing one leg over the other, hands clasped together elegantly. She gives them what might be a warm smile but to Chanyeol it looks like she probably has a number of dead bodies -- or not that dead if she really is a necromancer -- hidden somewhere in the building. "I will not be the one accompanying you, though the thought of seeing one of my own sorcerers handiwork destroy a nation is quite interesting. I’ll be staying here to take care of curfews and the like."

"One of your own sorcerers?" Baekhyun asks, sounding beyond confused and a little pissed off. "You mean the mist and these creatures coming back to life is your fault?"

Nana's eyebrows raise for a brief second, the only thing that gives away her surprise, before her face falls back into impassiveness. For a second she reminds Chanyeol of Lu Han, looking at Baekhyun like she's watching a bug.

"We didn't know what he was planning, and we didn't know it would go this far," She says slowly, keeping her voice steady. "It isn't my fault, and he's already received the karma he deserves for it. There's nothing else I can do aside from offering you Yixing here as a companion to help undo what's been done."

"They ate him," Chanyeol mutters, memory appearing on the surface of his brain much like the word "Amphaerie" had. They return much faster this time, the images of the Amphaerie bent over the corpse of a pink haired male, carving into him with their own claws. "The man with pink hair. Hongbin, right?"

The room goes silent, and Chanyeol nearly forgets that not everyone knows he has weird dreams about terrifying creatures that are supposedly real and happening.

"How do you know these facts?" Nana says, face showing the slightest bit of bewilderment.

"Dreams," Chanyeol says, flinching at suddenly being the centre of attention, and coughing slightly, wiping his palms on the front of his pants. "I keep having dreams - nightmares - about the Amphaerie and all of this. But I didn't know what they were until today."

"This is bad," The man beside Nana speaks for the first time, eyes widening as he stares at Chanyeol, not suspiciously, but fearfully. "If you can see them in dreams that means they can also see you. Like an exchange of information."

"What?" Chanyeol says, fear creeping up into his chest. "Why can they see me?"

"Do you lack a protective prayer?" The man asks, stepping forward and inspecting Chanyeol as if expecting to see the words of a prayer jump directly from his skin.

"Yes," Chanyeol says, eyes looking downwards, and he's thankful when no one questions why, the man just taking a step back and humming thoughtfully.

"We'll have to fix that." The man says to Nana, before looking back and addressing the group. "Are any of you close to him? You don't need to be extremely close, just enough to consider yourself friends. A Lover's Bond would be the safest form of protection, but we obviously cannot do that."

Chanyeol glances sideways at Lu Han, the only who could even be considered close to him, but Lu Han is shaking his head, leaving Chanyeol to remember that, oh yeah, _prisoner_.

"No I don't believe so."

"Ah." The man says in a resigned voice, sitting back down next to Nana and giving them a once over. "We'll have to deal with it for now. A Friend's Prayer can only be spoken and work if both sides consider themselves adequately close."

"So we keep trying it then?" Chanyeol suggests, but it sounds like a bleak outcome. They're a group that clearly doesn't get along, pushed together by force and too quickly, and he can't see anyone considering themselves close enough with him to give him a prayer of friendship.

"Yixing here is a healer, and can grant you temporary reprieve in the form of blocking your dreams while you sleep, but we cannot stop them from having access," Nana says, and she sounds troubled, glancing sideways at Yixing.

"We have no choice," Says Yixing and he looks at them curiously. "If you lot want to just take a seat at the table near the corner I can get you something to eat and tell you everything the Guild here knows about the Amphaerie."

"Right." Lu Han replies, nodding his head slightly, lips drawn into a thin line.

The knowledge that they're being watched hangs over their heads as they retrieve the sprites from outside and are seated at the table. The Amphaerie can see everything, know that they're coming, and it's with a kind of nervous trepidation that they settle in and wait.

Yixing explains the history of the Amphaerie surprisingly quickly, talking fast and waving his arms around ridiculously. He tells them that the first Amphaerie were created by the misuse of magic, mutated by alchemy experiments gone wrong.

"The two at first, wanted to undergo healing that the ancient sorcerers could provide them, but Elves back then were ambitious, and the ties between the kingdoms were loose." Yixing says, chewing on his fingers and looking too nonchalant for someone explaining horrible mutated beings that could kill something just by looking at it. "Their natural faerin was enhanced, their senses sharper and they didn't seem to be hurt by anything. So after a while the two decided that it was better as an Amphaerie, that everyone should become like them.

It started slowly, the Amphaerie hiding out of site, around three hours out of Calladron in what would eventually become Amfi."

Yixing draws in the air, muttering a foreign word under his breath and summoning the natural faerin found in the matter around them. He creates a map, circling Amfi and drawing a line back to them.

"It started out small," He continues, the map disappearing in a puff of red sparks. "Little experiments here and there, kidnapping Elves and submitting them to combinations. Trying to re create the original failed concept. And when it finally worked they didn't stop. They took more and more -- groups of Elves and entire village -- creating a race for themselves, and establishing a castle made from the slave labour of Elves that were injured or didn't properly undergo the Amphaerie change. They brainwashed the successful ones, making them a little less powerful than they themselves, using their superior abilities to make them mindless, but immortal."

Yixing pauses, sitting down in front of them and bringing the map back up.

"They did however create a third Amphaerie with heightened abilities, the kidnapped Prince of what was then the allied Elven kingdom, Meithliian. His name was Oh Sehun, and he was thought to be the angel Prince, innocent and kind, the face of Elven future. But under their influence, and morphed by his own new abilities, he fell victim to the Amphaerie way, and began to dictate Elven law." Yixing's face contorts into something ugly as he describes this part, wincing at some passed down memory. "A mass hysteria took over Calladron in the form of rolling mists, the hundreds of Amphaerie taking the children and murdering the adults. They had learned that those under the age of fourty three in Elven years were the best, ripe and young, with higher ambition and lower moral compasses. Other Elves were just obstacles, to be ripped apart by sirens and eaten by the Amphaerie."

"But why did the Amphaerie eat them?" Baekhyun murmurs to himself, sounding disgusted.

"Eating someone with faerin infused blood enhanced their senses." Yixing answers Baekhyun's question. "They wanted to be the most powerful, and as cliché and faerie tale as it sounds, they wanted to rule the Calladron, make everyone do their bidding."

"How did they fail though." Jongdae asks, leaning forward across the table, fingers twisting a lock of curly hair. "I mean they haven't been around for thousand of years, so how did the Elves win."

"They didn't." Yixing states coolly. "The humans did."

He sighs, running a hand through his hair and smiling good naturedly at the group.

"Humans and Elves didn't always have the truce and alliance they do today. Way back when they were actually at war -- the silent war they called it. Think of it as the kind of relationship Heidrun and Gaelgorn share today." Yixing says, eyes darting between Chanyeol and Lu Han, before settling on them as a whole. "Not exactly fighting, but not exactly friends either. But when your entire nation is being exploited and endangered, you have to do something to help right?"

The room is silent, and it takes them a while to realize that Yixing is expecting an answer, but no on responds, all of them glancing at each other warily. Yixing is making a parallel to their current situation, tense political arguments and closed off borders.

"You have no choice." Chanyeol says suddenly, speaking up amidst the awkward hush, tapping his fingers nervously on the table. "Put aside your differences or everyone dies in the mist."

"Exactly!" Yixing says, cheerful smile blooming across his features and eyes nearly twinkling. "So the humans took it upon themselves to seek help of the Necromancers, an organization of sorcerers, living on the hinges of proper law and society to help them. They needed something that would diminish the Amphaerie and get rid of them.

But of course the Amphaerie were immortal, all powerful, you name it. And it was difficult, and many more died in the process, many children lost. It was a huge blow to the Elven kingdom. They had no royalty, no government, and everyone lived in constant fear that they would either be kidnapped, killed or left to be eaten by the creatures that thrived on the mist's cloak. This is where the divide started, at first into two groups, and then into three, starting an internal civil war that is still going on today."

Chanyeol frowns, wondering just how much Elven history has been wiped from them, just how much tension has been built up over thousands of years that no one really knows the reason for. It upsets him, knowing that the Elves were once just Elves, and a simple alchemy problem could have ruined things forever.

"A Necromancer by the name of Sojin was the one who created a spell that would turn the Amphaerie into wraiths, beings without bodies left to rot in Amfi forever. She and her cult of Necromancers started a journey on foot to Amfi, much like the one we're about to embark on. By the time they arrived only her and one other were left." Yixing says, sighing deeply, and Chanyeol cringes at the connotation of his words, a double meaning suggesting the danger of this journey, and the possibility of some - or all - not making it out alive.

"She did however, chant the spell deep in the heart of the Amfi castle, banishing them. Sojin went home a hero, given a status of Empress and full rule over the human kingdom, birthing a long line of royal Necromancers. No longer was the art of Necromancy outlawed, but considered a gift, and one that decreed those with the art of it special status." Yixing licks his lips as he speaks, voice having lost it's cheery light sound a long time ago, and he looks sullen as he continues. "Empress Nana and her sisters are direct descendants of Sojin, and this is where we get to exactly why history is repeating itself. Lee Hongbin, husband of the Countess Krystal, whom you met earlier on your way in, was also a Necromancer, one of high social status, adviser to the Empress and watcher of the royal official guard. He went completely under our noses and discovered the reverse chant, one that would bring the Amphaerie back to life."

"But why?" Jongdae interrupts, the usually smiling corners of his mouth turned down into an angry pout.

"We're unsure, but I believe the Amphaerie were projecting their voices with what feeble faerin they had left, calling out to him and promising him immortality in exchange for their return as mortal beings." Yixing replies, drawing his tongue across his teeth in distress. "What we're doing is not reversing a spell, but using the original one passed down from Sojin. Which is why I'm readily agreeing to go with you. I may not be a Necromancer, but I'm human. A human did it last time, a human can do it this time."

"What if someone else wants to do it." Baekhyun snorts, looking at Yixing like he's grown an extra limb. "Don't you think that's a little pompous of you?"

"Like you're one to talk." Lu Han says sarcastically, voice dripping with general dislike.

"The person that utters this spell has a high chance of fatality," Yixing says, ignoring the snappish exchange, and continuing on. "You three are of royal blood or high status, and I'm just a healer. And I'm going to assume the sprites aren't available to do it because the prophecy doesn't include them, am I right?"

"You're right." Lu Han says, glancing at Jongdae and Minseok. "They're not mentioned anywhere. But Chanyeol isn't of royal status he could do it, couldn't he?"

"When it comes down to it, whoever is available to do it, will have to sacrifice and say the spell." Yixing muses, pulling the map back up and studying it, drawing a line from Karhaerin to Amfi, a long twisting line. "We'll be taking this route, though we may go off track with the visibility and travelling conditions. We need to go through the marshlands and over the Calla."

"The Calla will be the most dangerous." Lu Han says darkly, narrowing his eyes. "I've been there, and it's hard to survive even in broad daylight, let alone blindfolded and ear plugged."

"If we had the choice to do so, I'd have us all trained properly to survive," Yixing says slowly. "But regrettably, the mist is already rolling into the small villages and city borders, and we have no time to lose. We're going to have to leave right away, tomorrow night at the earliest."

Yixing stands, staring to his right at the Empress, who's been watching and listening silently. She nods to him, a signal of approval and he exhales, turning towards them and giving them a weak smile.

"Try not to be too scared from what I've told you. We need to stay optimistic and focus on our goal the entire time. It's about a months long travel on foot, so we better all get along the entire way, because all we'll have is each other." Yixing says, and his eyes flicker between the three Elves, with a serious that doesn't look attractive. "I can heal minor injuries quickly but if anyone receives something major we will be forced to halt and rest. We're not leaving anyone behind, no matter what."

Yixing's eyes linger on each of them for a bit, before he turns to the door and bows deeply. The girl from earlier, the one Yixing said is called Krystal is standing by the Empress' desk, looking as icy, if not icier. Yixing ushers her over and tells them that she'll be taking them to their rooms for the night, and that she will also be waking them in the morning.

Chanyeol gets to his feet, slowly, body and mind feeling drained from the words Yixing had spoken, and he can't tell whether they've comforted him and instilled an even deeper fear inside him.

He doesn't really want to know.

 

 

 

☁

Chanyeol tries to get a room with Lu Han, but Krystal doesn't seem to care for personal relationships, putting Jongdae, Minseok and Lu Han in one room, leaving Chanyeol with Baekhyun.

They don't say a single word, and Chanyeol feels awkward as he strips down from his robes, embarrassed by the lack of a private changing space. He dives under the covers of the small bed, staring forlornly at the fact that his feet stick off the edge. He watches Baekhyun out of the corner of his eye, admiring how soft his skin looks illuminated by the bedside lamp, before cursing himself for being a pervert, closing his eyes and breathing deeply, mulling over Yixing's words. His skin crawls at the Amphaerie, at the realization that they're watching them, that it's his fault for not having a Mother's Prayer, for not having anyone close enough to protect them.

Chanyeol can't help but feel guilty, rolling onto his stomach and burying his face into a pillow that smells faintly of lavender, ignoring the presence of Baekhyun in the bed beside him, mind a strange mix of two different kinds of fear, images of the Amphaerie looming over him, interrupted by unwanted thoughts of soft skin and delicate fingers.

 

 


	2. Mists Of The Calla 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> -

Morning comes too quickly, and Chanyeol wakes up groggy and confused to the image of Baekhyun looming over him, calling his name and shaking him roughly, looking pissed off. It takes a minute before Chanyeol's hearing turns on and Baekhyun garbled noises become words to his mind, and he sits up, pushing the Elf away from him, grumbling as he presses his palms to his eyelids. He has a migraine, intense and stabbing, and the sound of Baekhyun's voice, rambling and complaining, too whiny for him to handle is driving him up a wall.

"You need to get up. We need to leave and you're just sleeping here. Incredible. And Lu Han calls me spoiled and lazy." Baekhyun is yapping, and Chanyeol is vaguely reminded of a tiny dog yipping in his ear, and he smiles maniacally at the beautiful image of kicking Baekhyun the dog, before growling in annoyance, cradling his head in his hands.

"Would you shut the fuck up?" Chanyeol grunts angrily, anger boiling over at his sleepy state and pounding head, giving Baekhyun a dark look and practically throwing himself off the bed. He isn't shy about changing this morning, annoyed and angry, throwing on his robes, stomping around the room to find his discarded layers, voice rising as he finishes speaking. "You're so fucking annoying and the sound of your voice is giving me a headache."

Baekhyun stops mid rant, mouthing hanging open before he snaps it shut, whipping around and storming out of the room without another word, not waiting to see if Chanyeol is following him. 

"Fucking snobby brat." Chanyeol complains to himself as he straps up his boots. "Why does such a pretty face has such an ugly attitude."

When Chanyeol joins the others, all standing around another horse-drawn cart, his mood is even worse, and he wants nothing to do with speaking, hovering on the outside of the group, brooding and scowling. 

But Chanyeol remembers Yixing's words about getting along, about sticking together and being optimistic, and he plasters a hopeful look on his feet, greeting the others brightly and making a joke about the golden horse with longer hair looking just like Lu Han. This draws a weak spatter of laughter, and Chanyeol feels accomplished, nodding to himself as he climbs inside and sits down, gazing at the tall buildings of Karhaerin as they disappear into the distance, and eventually into the mist. 

It's hard to keep his self assured gait up for long when they go further and further into the mist and to the edge of Thelgard territory, exiting the cart. It's cold at the edge of the forest now, damp chill seeming to reach Chanyeol's bones and he unconsciously moves closer to whoever's standing beside him, not even caring that it's Baekhyun, apprehension starting to fill his senses when Yixing turns to the group, and then to Lu Han.

"We need to take the moss tunnels underneath Lei and Gaelgorn." He says, and Lu Han nods in agreement.

"Chanyeol's been in there with me before so he knows what to expect." Lu Han says, and he gives Chanyeol an expectant look, silently ordering the Knight over to his side. "You can tell the others the rules. Make sure they stick behind me. This isn't just me and you now, and you're responsible for keeping everyone on track, got it?"

"Yes master." Chanyeol says dryly, trying his best to ignore Lu Han's commanding tone, and resisting the urge to roll his eyes. His brief sense of optimism has vanished, leaving him with the same sense of annoyance and anger as when he'd first woken up, a serious look taking over his features. 

"Shut up Chanyeol." Lu Han mutters before turning to Yixing. "Can you navigate the tunnels? I don't know this side of them, I only know past Lei."

"And I only to know until the edge of Lei." Yixing says, sounding more cheerful than he probably should. "We make a good team then."

Chanyeol doesn't stick around for the rest of their conversation, explaining the tunnels to the others and shooting down Baekhyun's complaints of wanting to go the way they came. 

"Look, it's either the dangerous way, or we waste time." Chanyeol snaps, glaring down Baekhyun and rolling his eyes for real now. He turns his anger on Jongdae and Minseok, sighing dramatically. "Can't you cage your fucking Prince? He's getting annoying."

"Look, it's either the dangerous way, or we waste time." Chanyeol snaps, glaring down Baekhyun and rolling his eyes for real now. He turns his anger on Jongdae and Minseok, sighing dramatically. "Can't you cage your fucking Prince? He's getting annoying."

Everyone looks shocked at Chanyeol's sudden - and out-of-character - outburst, but no one says anything, just silently nodding at Lu Han's orders to follow behind Yixing and him. The entrance to the moss tunnel is beside the river, the ground muddy and wet, squelching under their boots. It's different than the other entrance Chanyeol remembers, the Gaelgorn one being large and decorated, while this one is just a giant hole in the ground, sloping and disgusting, leading underground.

"Are we going under the river?" Baekhyun says, voice laced with disgust as he attempts to tip toe through the gunk filled river bank and protect his robes at the same time. 

"Yep!" Lu Han grins at him, a feral kind of smile, looking pleased at the chance to make Baekhyun uncomfortable. "Do you want to go first?"

Baekhyun grimaces, hiding behind Jongdae who's carrying a fox Minseok in his arms. Minseok snarls at Baekhyun disapprovingly, but stills once they enter, ears laying perfectly flat and eyes sparkling with unease. 

The tunnels are just as Chanyeol remembers them, dark and wet, making his headache worse as they turn corner after corner, the roar of the river loud above them. Chanyeol is less scared this time, knows that if he follows Yixing they'll be fine, though the human seems less in tune with the swampy terrain than Lu Han. 

The one thing he can't ignore though is how close Baekhyun is to him, seeming to realize that Jongdae can't protect him if he's holding a fox in his arms, and Yixing and Lu Han are busy up front. He sticks to Chanyeol like glue, even gripping his robes and tugging on them in panic when the faerin dances too close. Chanyeol doesn't try to shake him off, just shushes his whining and focuses on Yixing calling to Lu Han to take over the guiding, a sense of security falling over him knowing they're in his hands. 

Chanyeol recognizes some parts of these tunnels, clamping a hand over his ears seconds before Lu Han commands the rest to do it, catching a fleeting smile thrown in his direction before it's gone and Lu Han is back to being commanding. 

They get through them quickly, with little to no problems other than Baekhyun tripping and nearly falling, not even thanking a flustered Yixing when he drags him up and along with them. 

Seeing sunlight is just as beautiful as the first they exited the tunnels, but this time it's somewhere Chanyeol doesn't recognize, forestry with huge trees and nearly no sunlight. The mist is thick here, and Chanyeol is confused for a second, but then he remembers that they're no longer running away from the mist, but running into it, closer towards the source. 

This forest has a different feel than the one surrounding lei, unforgiving and dark, and even in the mist there are animals abundant, every crack or rustle making Chanyeol jump in fear. 

He's back walking with Lu Han, unconsciously feeling a stronger sense of security with him. Lu Han isn't talking much, lost in himself and in the forest, and Chanyeol doesn't try to push conversation, eventually falling back a half step. Close enough to feel safe, but far enough to not impose. 

Baekhyun is complaining, snarling at Yixing who takes it surprisingly well, answering every whined complaint in an airy honest voice. Chanyeol isn't sure if he's being sarcastic or genuine, lilting tone never leaving his words.

They've been walking for about two hours when Chanyeol notices the feel of the forest change. It's quiet, too quiet, animal sounds gone to leave only the sounds of their footsteps. Chanyeol doesn't like it, but no one else seems to have noticed, keeping up the same steady pace, a hush over the group as they move deeper into the trees. 

Chanyeol wants to say something, suggest that they be careful, but he doesn't feel qualified enough, is afraid of being wrong, and so he keeps his mouth shut. Lu Han pauses in front of a particularly large tree, tracing his fingers over a drawing carved into the wood, and looking above them. 

"The wood folk live here." He says to Yixing, voice barely carrying through the dead and heavy air, but Yixing hears, stepping carefully over a decaying log, and tracing his fingers over the same drawing.

"The imps." Yixing mutters, and he gazes up into the sky, "Do you think they've survived the mist? It's probably been here for a while."

Lu Han is about to answer, but he's got off by a shrill shriek, whipping around to see Baekhyun on the forest floor, scrambling backwards and howling in pain, pupils blown out with fear. 

Lu Han whips his bow off his back, but drops the pack of arrows in his haste to arm it, yelling out "someone kill that it's a finrar," but no one moves, frozen and unsure. 

Jongdae backs up quickly, pinning a growling Minseok in his arms and telling him to transform in case the creature bites him. 

"You can't survive a finrar bite." Jongdae snaps when Minseok gives him a baleful glare. "We don't have time for your shifter pride."

Lu Han has his bow armed and ready, aiming carefully for the rodent looking creature, but he never gets the chance to shoot because another arrow is piercing through the air, lodging itself in the finrar's neck. The small animal crumples to the ground, and Lu Han inches towards it slowly, poking it with his foot before deciding that yes, it's indeed dead. 

He raises his eyes to towards the tops of the trees, hidden of sight in shadows and mist, calling out. Chanyeol has no idea what's going on, rushing to Baekhyun's side. He fights with him, lifting up his pant leg to see his calf stained a rotten purple colour. Chanyeol panics, leaning back on his heels to ask Yixing for help when two figures drop down from somewhere above them, landing gracefully on the forest floor.

They're petite, a girl and a boy, dressed in simple clothing, small knives and bows strapped to them using strong cords. The girl steps forward, surveying them carefully before turning back to the boy, speaking rapidly in a language Chanyeol doesn't recognize. The boy approaches them cautiously, and he glances from person to person, seeming unsure of who to address, but Lu Han lowers his bow, exhaling in relief and bowing to them.

"If you seek refuge we must move quickly." The girl says, and her voice is sharp and youthful, accent thick as she speaks the common tongue. "One finrar means fifty finrar and your friend is injured."

"Only until he heals." Yixing says politely, smiling in gratitude as he hovers over Baekhyun, waving his hand dismissively and moving Chanyeol out of his way. Baekhyun is panting, looking delirious, and Chanyeol hesitates before walking back near the rest. 

"Come." The girl says, placing a hand on the boy's arm and whispering something to him. "The vines will take us up to where our companion is keeping watch."

"Be careful." The boys says, voice rising slightly over the clear sound of the girl calling in an animal like voice. The vines are thick, falling down like ropes and Chanyeol reaches out to grab one tentatively, scrunching his nose when it pulses under his fingertips. 

"Just hold on tight and they will bring us up." The boy tells them, and he looks at them curiously, eyes large and glassy, resting on Jongdae for a heartbeat longer than the rest before focusing on Yixing. "Sorcerer, can you carry him?"

"Hm." Yixing says shortly, hoisting Baekhyun over his back and gripping the vine firmly. 

Chanyeol's hands are shaking as he holds on as tightly as possible, knuckles turning white when the vine begins to rise, bottom curling around his legs and holding him into place. They move slowly, but Chanyeol gets used to it after a while, breath evening out and hands relaxing. Lu Han on the other hand has his entire body wrapped around the vine and eyes squeezed shut, reminding Chanyeol of when they rose on the giant leaf into Lei. He feels a stab of sympathy for Lu Han; even Elves like him have things they're afraid of. 

They land on a wooden platform, vines dropping them with a thud onto the surface, and Chanyeol looks up to be greeted by another petite boy, this one with large round eyes and welcoming features. He's cute, at least from upside down where Chanyeol is lying on the cold wood, the kind of person you want to cuddle and be best friends with. 

They're rushed inside of a rundown looking hut quickly, and it reminds Chanyeol of a lower class version of Lei. The place is destitute, walls torn down and bugs everywhere. The mood is sombre as they settles into a small room, the one intact and safe seeming part of the entire tree house system, making do with beds of leaves and moss. 

"As you can see." The cute one says, looking downcast and sullen, cute image fading away quickly as he speaks. "We haven't fared the mist much. This is all that's left."

"Are-are you three the only imps left in the forest?" Yixing asks, eyes round and fearful, looking up from where he's been pressing his palm to Baekhyun's leg. The Prince is twitching slightly, high from some kind of fever, and Chanyeol wonders if they're already going to lose a person, recalling Lu Han's warning of the finrar. He shakes the thoughts from his mind, fingers curling into the front of his shirt with terrified grief. Baekhyun may be a brat, but Chanyeol feels strangely attached to this group of people, and to his own life, and he sinks into the wall. 

This place is dreary, devoid of life, the only light coming from Lu Han, cradling the faerin infused energy in his hands, staring into it as if it holds all the answers. 

It's calm though, enclosed and secure, or Chanyeol tries to think of it as secure at least, closing his eyes against the images of the war torn looking imp community. 

"We're the only three left here at least." The girl says darkly, tucking a strand of damp short hair behind her ear, eyes flickering nervously. "But there are many other colonies, and we want to keep our hopes high. We may just die here though."

There are brief introductions, learning that the girl is Hyeri, and the two boys are Joonmyun and Kyungsoo, but there isn't much talking past that aside from Jongdae explaining the prophecy and who they are in hushed tones to an enraptured and terrified looking Joonmyun. 

Chanyeol doesn't sleep this night, agreeing to keep an eye on Baekhyun and on the destroyed hallway outside, letting the others fall into a sporadic pattern of slumber and wake. Baekhyun is awake too, his fever having gone down but his skin is still breaking out into cold sweats, and he whimpers rather than speaks, pressing his body close to Chanyeol's, and for once Chanyeol doesn't complain. 

He pushes Baekhyun's sweat soaked bangs back to check his temperature, forehead burning and eyelashes fluttering weakly. Chanyeol freezes with his hand on Baekhyun's forehead for a moment, staring down into his eyes that give away nothing but vulnerability in this moment, brimming with tears and devoid of their usual flash of conceit. 

They don't talk - Chanyeol isn't even sure if Baekhyun can talk right now - but Chanyeol feels strangely closer to him after that night, falling asleep to the sounds of Yixing waking up and taking his place next to Baekhyun, whispering Ancient Elvish words over him. 

Hyeri and Joonmyun are weirdly optimistic for their dire situation, joking around playfully with Jongdae and Minseok, eating their gifted portions of Lu Han's honey bread ravenously, thanking him with tears in their eyes. 

"Minseok you should have been an imp, you're the right size." Jongdae says, smirking and friendly punching Minseok on the shoulder, receiving a spattering of laughter from whoever's listening. "I always knew there was a reason we never felt enough kinship."

Kyungsoo on the other hand remains silent and dour, unenthusiastic about joining into the lightened atmosphere, hanging back by himself and constantly leaving to roam the hallways, muttering something about always staying on the lookout for danger.

Yixing repeatedly thanks the imps for saving Baekhyun's life and for helping them overnight as Baekhyun finally sits up, weak and feverish still, but conscious, and much to Chanyeol and Lu Han's annoyance, capable of talking, complaining loudly about how much his leg hurts and could Yixing please do the healing thing to his pounding head?

Despite his annoyance, Chanyeol ends up sticking with Baekhyun, staying behind to look after him while the others venture out in search of food, Chanyeol begging them to stay safe, scarred by the state of the forest and by the mist. 

"We used to employ imps." Baekhyun says suddenly, rolling onto his back and groaning, looking up at Chanyeol upside down. His eyelashes are doing the fluttering thing again and Chanyeol help but stare into his eyes. They're deep and beautiful, dark but sparkling and intelligent. Chanyeol could stare into them forever if he had the chance. "The imps aren't really fond of Lei Elves though. The Queen replaced them with sprites because they have more versatile magic and skill sets."

"Is that why the imps live out here in the forest?" Chanyeol asks, licking his lips unconsciously and trying to ignore the way his eyes dart down to Baekhyun's lips, chapped but soft looking, mouth looking delicate when it moves. He's doomed, catching feelings for a monster of an Elf with a whirlwind personality and what seems like no personal care for those around him. Chanyeol feels cursed, he could have been attracted to someone who's a decent being at least. 

"No, the imps have always lived here." Baekhyun says, sitting up and yawning, looking a lot healthier than he had mere hours ago, and Chanyeol is momentarily impressed by Yixing's handiwork, hoping that Baekhyun at least has the grace to thank him. "A lot of them were put out of a job and into danger though, not knowing how to properly survive in their own forest."

"That's sad." Chanyeol says, frowning deeply. "Shouldn't the Queen have given them rights for helping her people for so long?"

"That's life." Baekhyun says airily. "The high status gets what the high status gets and the imps suffer. The Queen doesn't care, as long as her royal family stays safe."

"Do you care?" Chanyeol tries, confused about this conversation and where it's going, reaching out for a thread of humanity in Baekhyun, hoping to pluck a conscience out of his privileged brain.

"Why should I?" Baekhyun hums, looking genuinely confused. "I'm taught to care about my own people, not another species below us."

"No species is below another." Chanyeol says darkly, moving away from Baekhyun in his anger. "Everyone has rights and should be treated the same. How would you feel if you were an imp suddenly put in danger because your employer doesn't think you're good enough?"

"I would accept it, because that is the natural order of things." Baekhyun responds, and his cold voice is back, the one used when speaking to Lu Han at their initial meeting. "I would accept the life I was born into and go about it with no questions, as it should be?"

"Is that what your mother taught you as a child?" Chanyeol says scathingly. "To disregard basic rights because 'that's just how life works?'"

"I am not disregarding anyone's rights." Baekhyun argues, sitting up and huffing at him in annoyance. "I'm just saying that no one should expect what is above their rights, which are generally lower than that of an Elf. Anywhere, not just in Lei. I don't particularly like you and that Gaelgorn prince is scum, but I would sooner risk my life for yours than the sprites or the imps, simply because you are Elves and of higher status."

"That's not how it works, Baekhyun." Chanyeol says, but he's giving up. Baekhyun's never going to understand, just going to sit on his Princely throne forever, whether it be in real life or in his mind. "You save people because you care about them, not because of what their special and social standing says."

Baekhyun doesn't answer, laying back down and closing his eyes, body language saying this conversation is over.

Chanyeol is frustrated, feather's ruffled and conscience angry. This Elf is going to learn how to love and care about those other than himself. 

They're ready to go by the next morning, dragging their feet as they prepare to travel once again. Everyone is drained, tired, and the morale is low, Chanyeol literally dragging Baekhyun to his feet, and glaring away his protests. Baekhyun tries to fight with him, but Chanyeol's grip is firm, and the Elf goes pliant, letting himself be pulled along, limping still on his injured leg. 

They take the vines down to the forest floor, the imps landing softly beside them with adept skill navigating the trees and the forest, even in the conditions. 

"Thank you for all your help." Lu Han says politely, bowing to each of them. They're about to part ways, Jongdae and Joonmyun exchanging hugs and promising to see each other again, Chanyeol eyeing them with suspicion and slight jealousy. 

They turn to start walking, Chanyeol's fingers around Baekhyun's wrist in a way mirroring Lu Han's on his some weeks earlier, when a nervous cough makes them turn back.

"We have something to ask of you." Kyungsoo says, looking slightly apprehensive. "We were just wondering if we could maybe come with you?"

"Come with us?" Lu Han says, voice laced with confusion. "Why would you want to come with us?"

"Well, to be quite honest with you." Joonmyun takes over for Kyungsoo, voice soft and scared. "If we stay here we're probably going to die, and that’s just how it is."

"If you come with us you may as well meet that same fate." Lu Han says quietly, tilting his head to the side. 

"Yes, but at least it would be meaningful." Joonmyun states, and he sounds firm, like the decision had already been made before they even asked. "Jongdae told me everything about what you're doing, and die assisting you guys in fixing this hell we're in would be a whole lot better than sitting in our destroyed tree house waiting for the wolves to come knocking."

Lu Han blinks slowly, mulling it over silently, but it's Yixing who speaks up.

"Alright then. Come with us. We could use people with your skill set for combat and food gathering." He says, fixing the rest of them with a look that dares them to go against him. "It's going to be a lot more dangerous out in Kíló Hægrimenn and on the Calla."

"We can handle it." Hyeri states and she scampers to the head of the group, tightening her bow before putting into straps. "What are you waiting for? We have to move with haste, right?"

"Right." Lu Han says, and Chanyeol recognizes the look of slight concern on his face, the same one he'd gotten back in Gaelgorn. Chanyeol smiles to himself, lifting a slouching and slightly green looking Baekhyun back into a proper standing position. Lu Han can't fool anyone with his impassive and uncaring nature. 

Chanyeol sets off in high spirits, the addition of three people aiding him in feeling like they could actually make it out alive. 

It takes them three days to reach the edge of the forest, not resting at all except for a brief intermission when Baekhyun's leg flares up and he sits on the ground, refusing to move. They take the rest with relief, collapsing onto the leafy ground, but Chanyeol can see the flash of impatience in Lu Han's eyes. 

"Baekhyun stop being so whiny." He snaps, wanting nothing more than to just reach over and clap a hand over Baekhyun's mouth, maybe even have an excuse to see if his lips are actually as soft as they look. Yixing is has finished giving him a pain release, and they should be moving by now, should be up and walking, getting ready to face the marshlands, but Baekhyun is staying still on the ground, whimpering about his leg. 

"I'm not being whiny fuck." Baekhyun swears, throwing a scathing look at Chanyeol and returning to whining. "It just fucking hurts."

"Well fucking deal with it." Chanyeol lashes out, voice uncharacteristically sharp. "We're all tired, we're all probably going to be injured at one point or another, but you need to think of the group and not just yourself. We need to keep moving."

"Fuck that." Baekhyun retorts, and he lays down, even daring to put his head on Chanyeol's thigh, cursing loudly when he's pushed off. He rolls over and props himself up, voice cutting out like knives. "Here, This is me thinking about the group. We should rest here and get sleep before going into the marshlands. What if we can't sleep and our judgment is impaired? What if my leg gets worse because Yixing is too dead to heal?"

Chanyeol goes silent. He can't tell if Baekhyun's being genuine or if he's just bullshitting, using his words to manipulate him, but Chanyeol gives in, sliding down the tree and onto his back. He struggles when Baekhyun gleefully uses his chest as a pillow, but gives up, closing his eyes and breathing heavily in an attempt to calm his flaring temper. 

"He's right." Yixing says softly from where he's sitting behind Lu Han and massaging his shoulders, sparks of something yellow and sparkling running from his fingers and over Lu Han. "We should sleep here. We can sleep in shifts, taking turns to keep watch until we're fully rested and ready."

Chanyeol just grunts, ignoring the rest of the aimless chatter after that, and he begrudgingly falls into a sleep himself, wondering if he's imagining thin fingers curling around his waist, or soft hair tickling his chin. 

\--- Kíló Hægrimenn ---

 

The change from forest to swamp is abrupt, catching Chanyeol by surprise when they reach the edge of the trees. He can no longer see the shadows of the trunks in the distance, and the air is oppressive and wet, the humidity giving Chanyeol a headache. 

They walk for nearly a day without anything happening, Baekhyun slowly regaining his leg and no longer limping. He still stays stuck to Chanyeol's side somehow, leaving Chanyeol confused about whether or not he minds it. 

Finding dry ground is nearly impossible, and when they do, it makes Chanyeol nervous. Out in the open with only a few trees and some tall reeds, phantom splashes here and there making him jump. They stay here to rest in the end, too worried about not finding another spot, Lu Han staying up on watch, sitting cross-legged and cradling his bow as if it's his child. He asks - no, orders, Chanyeol to stay up with him, and Chanyeol agrees hesitantly. 

He's barely spoken to Lu Han for the last couple of days, the other being busy with Yixing or looking lost in thought, and Chanyeol considers offering up Joonmyun to help watch. That thought is ditched when he sees Joonmyun collapse onto Jongdae's lap, exhausted, the others doing the same here and there. He sighs, resigned to an awkward night with the cold Elf, sitting beside him and squinting into the mist. He's looking for signs of trouble, but really Chanyeol's just pretending to be doing something, hoping that if anything does happen Lu Han can take care of it. 

Chanyeol's gotten away with not having to do anything that requires particular skill yet, sword lying unused in it's holder, or on the ground beside him, and he plans to keep it unused, shuddering at the thought of having to prove himself and failing. 

He's only a Knight by default, doesn't possess any real combat skills, and it leads him to wonder why Lu Han would ask him to help when he knows perfectly well that Chanyeol can't do anything. 

"Why am I keeping watch with you?" Chanyeol mutters after a solid hour of watching Lu Han lovingly caress the golden arrows in his lap. Lu Han snickers, looking at him with friendly eyes. 

"Because if something happens I can count on you to scream loud enough that everyone will wake up." Lu Han says seriously, and there's no teasing in his voice. "I mean, Baekhyun would do the job well enough also, but there's no way I'm spending hours with him."

"Pleased to be of service then." Chanyeol mumbles, more to himself than Lu Han, but it earns him a grin and he jumps in surprise when Lu Han pushes him playfully. 

"Don't be a big baby, you're special." Lu Han says, and Chanyeol can't tell if he's being sincere or not, face still devoid of any proper emotion. "I wouldn't just sit for hours in the dark with the rest of that lot."

"That lot." Chanyeol says, a chuckle bubbling up inside of him, and suddenly spending hours keeping watch with Lu Han doesn't seem that bad. Chanyeol wonders about the Friend's Prayer. He kind of wants to bring it up again, see if Lu Han is willing to try it, but he remembers Lu Han's denial of them being anything close, keeping his mouth shut , staring into the murky water in front of them. 

"You and Baekhyun seem … close lately." Lu Han says suddenly, eyeing him suspiciously over the tip of an arrow.

"I think he thinks we're friends now." Chanyeol says, scrunching up his nose and willing away the cheering in his chest that tells him yes! we're totally close. 

"That's unfortunate." Lu Han says with a leer, and it really is hard to tell whether or not he's joking, voice staying the same level with each word he says. "Though maybe it's a step up. Maybe he has a soul."

"Well I mean, a couple of weeks ago I was convinced you didn't have one." Chanyeol says, and he means it as a joke, but Lu Han's face turns serious, the other Elf looking guilty.

"I expected you to be like Baekhyun." Lu Han says truthfully. "I thought Heiðrún Knights were patriotic and condescending."

"Most of them are." Chanyeol nods, but he glares at Lu Han. "Not me though, you should know this by now."

"Oh I figured it out that first night when you were scared of water and the dark and then cried in my bed." Lu Han teases, and now Chanyeol can tell he is playing around, face lighting up with laughter. It's nice to see Lu Han opening up, nice to him actually displaying something that isn't quiet indifference. 

"I don't like being underground, or enclosed spaces or-"

"You're afraid of everything, Chanyeol." Lu Han interrupts, but his eyes are smiling, crinkling at the edges and Chanyeol smiles back, feeling refreshed as they look over the strangely calm marshes.

 

☁

 

Joonmyun is warm, cuddling into Jongdae's side and telling him stories about his colony, and about growing up learning how to shoot bows and leap through the trees. 

His voice is soft and welcoming and his he smiles easily, making too many bad jokes, face looking ugly when he tears up talking about home. Jongdae is getting attached fast - too fast - and it should make him nervous, should make him worry when they're sitting in the heart of danger, with the entire world feeling like it's at sake.

It feels natural, his friendship with Joonmyun, and Jongdae feels as though they've known each other for years and not mere days, stomach fluttering traitorously at their natural touchiness. Jongdae falls asleep the first night in the marshes listening to Chanyeol and Lu Han talking quietly by the edge of the water, and fantasizes about what it could be like if none of this happened and he could have met Joonmyun normally. 

Maybe he would get lost in the forest, floating along as a ball of crackling energy, scaring Joonmyun and popping back into himself, good-looking and sarcastic and irresistible. Joonmyun would fall for him and Jongdae could finally leave his job as royal guard, could learn how to leap through the trees and into Joonmyun's arms. 

But it didn't happen like that, and instead Jongdae's trying to block out the whispering voices he always swears he hears in the mist, drawing his fingers through the imp's hair and thinking about better times. Their clothes are damp and their spirits are neither low nor high. Jongdae's never been one to be silent, never been one to cry in the face of danger, but he feels like lately, wondering when the first real test will be, when the first real crisis will descend upon them, much worse than a poisonous squirrel biting Baekhyun. 

Chanyeol had mentioned the wolves, had recounted the utter feeling of hopelessness he'd felt trapped under one, and it makes Jongdae shiver. He may be armed, he may be experienced, but that's against common folk Elves and basic creatures of the forest. Jongdae can't imagine squaring up against a wolf the size of an ancient beast, and the thought keeps him up for a while longer before he succumbs to his fatigue, lulled by Joonmyun's soft breaths. 

 

☁

 

The fog is heavier in the marshlands than it had been in the forest, gaining moisture from the dirty waters of the swampy lands. It chills Chanyeol to the bone, and he shivers, pushing a tall weed out of his way as he walks, constantly glancing behind him. The sloshing of the knee-deep water as they trudge through it is making him paranoid. Every sound, every splash, seems off in the distance, making Chanyeol stop abruptly every once in a while, bumping into Baekhyun. 

Baekhyun has been sticking close to him for some reason, and Chanyeol almost has half a mind to reach out and hold his hand, which is ridiculous considering Baekhyun is insufferable, not to mention they’re in disgusting water, travelling in constant fear. 

The imps are coping well, sharp and dignified, Joonmyun using his water specialty to practically glide through the water, earning him a shock and a scowl from Jongdae. Those two have become weirdly close in just a few days, and Jongdae no longer sleeps cuddling fox Minseok, opting instead for nuzzling himself into Joonmyun’s side. 

Chanyeol wishes he could have someone like that right now, but his only option for closeness is Lu Han, and Chanyeol nearly giggles out loud into the dreary mist at the mental image of him and Lu Han cuddling. His giggle catches when his mind automatically supplies him with Baekhyun, and he frowns. It’s just his luck that they’re in the middle of a murky swamp with no end in sight and his only romantic interest is someone who still constantly complains when his royal robes get wet. 

Chanyeol is so distracted by his conflicting thoughts that he accidentally bumps into Baekhyun again, elbowing him in the process. Chanyeol blushes before he can catch himself, apologizing quickly, but Baekhyun latches onto his arm instead. 

“Can you fucking stop doing that?” Baekhyun hisses, gripping Chanyeol’s bicep tightly, pressing in close to his side. Chanyeol isn’t really sure how to feel about this, body screaming yes and mind screaming no, you hate him. 

But Baekhyun is difficult to dislike, with his stupid fluttering eyelashes and soft skin, even despite his constant whining and sharp tongue, and Chanyeol is weak to it, relenting for half a second before he catches himself. 

“Why are you so close to me?” He complains, pulling his arm out of Baekhyun’s vice-like grip and distancing himself. He winces when warm water seeps into his boots, mentally praying to Zafkra that Yixing’s healing powers cover hypothermia for when he freezes in the middle of the night via lack of sleeping partner. 

Moving away from Baekhyun means moving closer to Minseok, who looks sullen, trapped in sprite form due to the swampy environment as per Jongdae’s orders. 

“I don’t want you like drowning or tripping on something you know.” Jongdae had said, looking genuinely concerned, earning a glare from Minseok, but an agreement in the end. 

Five minutes of walking next to the cloud of misery that is Minseok makes Chanyeol almost miss Baekhyun hanging off his arm, and he glances to left to see Baekhyun shivering, wrapping his tattered robes around himself like a curtain. It reminds Chanyeol of his own behaviour back on the way to Gaelgorn, when he’d hugged his Heiðrún robes close to his heart, struggling to keep up with Lu Han. 

Chanyeol feels braver now than he had back then, walking confidently and speaking his mind, keeping his optimism up and his smiles wide, easily becoming the mood maker. His jokes aren’t always the greatest, and sometimes he’s the only one that laughs, but it’s worth it to see Hyeri break out into a shy smile, Lu Han giving him a look that almost seems fond. 

He feels brave enough to help Lu Han stand watch again, and the marshlands are so calm, almost peaceful, that Lu Han tells him to rest, it should be fine tonight.

It's fine for a while, Chanyeol falling asleep on the damp ground wishing he had something to hold to his chest for comfort, eyes falling shut and mind singing. 

The nightmares are back again.

They're almost easier to deal with now, a voice in Chanyeol’s subconscious telling him that these images are real, but it's the fact that they are real that has him bolting up off the ground and screaming, "cover your ears" mere seconds before the singing starts.

The singing is beautiful, slightly hypnotizing even through the cover of his own hands. He glances around to make sure everyone else has their ears covered, make sure they're safe, and he panics.

Hyeri is walking towards the water, eyes blank and body moving in a trance, taking careful steps one after the other, and that's when Chanyeol sees it. A mermaid like creature, grotesque in appearance but mouth open wide, impossibly wide, large green eyes bug-like and trained directly on Hyeri. 

For a moment they all freeze, hands over their ears and unsure what to do, who will move and take the chance. Chanyeol steps backward, tripping over Lu Han's bow, and gasping, hands falling from his ears and singing loud, as if the siren is right next to him.

"Chanyeol. Use my bow, you have a clear shot and it's distracted." Lu Han shrieks, desperation in his voice, but the words come slowly into Chanyeol’s understanding, movements sluggish as he tries to pick up the bow, entire body shaking as he loads it.

It's quivering in his hands and he can't get the arrow to lock into place, aim wavering and arms hesitating to pull back. He does have a clear shot, directly into the sirens mouth, but he's never shot a bow outside the shooting range, has never felt the full brunt of a sirens song. He falters, the first arrow flying two feet and landing on the ground with a sad thump, and Lu Han barks an order at him, obnoxious and agitated.

"Chanyeol just shoot the fucking bow." Lu Han snaps walking forward towards him, but Chanyeol is frozen, eyes wide and mouth hanging open as he watches Hyeri.

He watches her walk forward, watches her fall face first into the water with a splash and a thud, and he watches, body frozen with horror and mind swimming with the sirens song and Lu Han's desperate screaming, as the siren lunges towards her, slicing her neck open with a knife like claw, song becoming a mindless scream. 

It's a sound Chanyeol has never heard the likes of, and he drops the bow to the ground, stumbling and falling backwards. What happens next will probably etch it's way into Chanyeol’s thoughts forever, imprinted into his nightmares for months - years- to come.

Lu Han is diving forwards, retrieving the bow and aiming it quickly, but he's too late, and Joonmyun screams, louder than the rest of them, louder than the siren. 

It takes one twist of the sirens claws to rip Hyeri’s head clean from her body, and another scream for it to devour it, Lu Han's arrow piercing through its skull and killing it a heartbeat too late, it's body falling next to the imps broken one.

It's silent save for Joonmyun’s whimpering, head squeezed into Jongdae’s arms. No one says a word, sitting in shock and muted terror, staring at the place where the siren had been, where Hyeri had been, until it breaks.

"You're fucking useless." Lu Han shrieks, turning on Chanyeol and grabbing the collar of his robes, face twisted into something ugly that Chanyeol is yet to witness until now. "You just had to shoot the bow Chanyeol. You just had to fucking shoot."

"I panicked, and the song, and I- I couldn't." Chanyeol screams back, voice cracking into a near sob.

"You should have tried harder." Lu Han snarls, releasing Chanyeol roughly, and he falls backwards, half on the ground and half on his ass. "You're so fucking useless. Why are you even here why. She would still be alive if you weren't so fucking useless."

"It's not my fault." Chanyeol yells, getting up and glaring Lu Han down, fingers curled into fists at his sides, not caring about the silent audience.

"Yes it is. Congratulations she's dead because of you. It is your fault." Lu Han says scathingly, not yelling anymore. But the words go straight into Chanyeol, and he deflates, hands falling to his sides and head towards the ground in defeat.

"Shut up." Baekhyun snaps unexpectedly, eyes dark and angry. "If he hadn't woken us up and told us to cover our ears we all could have been Hyeri."

"Why are you defending him?" Lu Han says sharply, directing his fury on Baekhyun, who simply shrugs, eyes wild, darting between the water and Lu Han.

"I hate you more than him." Baekhyun says simply, and he grins, looking manic. "At least he tried."

"Trying isn't enough." Lu Han says, voice rising in volume again, and he looks as if he wants to take out his dagger, wants to tear them apart. "You don't just try in situations like these. You just fucking do. Because you know what happens when you try? Someone's head gets torn off by a siren."

Baekhyun starts to retort, looking venomous as he inches closer to Lu Han, and Chanyeol is confused now, ready to yell out something about how it is his fault and he's sorry, but they're interrupted by a clear voice.

"Stop it." Minseok barks out, walking in between them, glaring at Lu Han and Baekhyun. "Fucking get over yourselves."

"I don't need-" Lu Han starts, but Minseok interrupts, looking completely furious, and it's something that Chanyeol thinks he doesn't really want to see again.

"Yes you do. Especially you." Minseok growls. "Do you think Chanyeol's ever properly shot a bow? Do you think he's ever had to deal with a siren face to face? No he hasn't. So it's not his fault that in the face of terror he couldn't shoot. In fact, it's nobody's fault. What happened, happened and we can't do anything to fucking change that, and snarling at each other's throats isn't going to magically fix things or bring her back from the dead. So shut up and let's fucking move."

No one moves at first, standing in shock at Minseok's words and at what's just happened, but eventually they start walking again, Yixing patting Chanyeol's shoulder consolingly before taking the lead. They walk like robots, stiff and without enthusiasm, each of them lost in their own thoughts. Even Jongdae, floating beside Yixing like a flashlight is dim, barely sparking. 

The imps are quiet, walking with each other, but Chanyeol hears Joonmyun mutter to Kyungsoo that he's okay, that it was just an amount of time before they lost another of their colony. He sounds so broken that Chanyeol wants to break down and cry. 

He doesn't have the energy to focus on what Baekhyun's trying to say in his ear, doesn't have the energy to focus on Baekhyun in general, too busy repeating Lu Han's screamed words in his head. He knows he's useless, and he knows it is his fault. You just had to fucking shoot.

Chanyeol is so broken, so defeated, moving on autopilot and trying to block out Lu Han's periodic sideways glares that he doesn't even notice the change in terrain, doesn't notice the murky water becoming smaller puddles, and eventually damp ground. 

They're nearing the edge of the Marshlands, on the edge of the infamous Calla, a place that no one dares to brave even in broad daylight, and he doesn't think he's quite ready for more. 

\--- The Calla ---

 

The mist is thick as ever , and the murky water cold through the thin material of his pants, but Jongdae is okay with it, okay with anything right now really, because he's got the water imp by his side, calm, caring and loving, to guide him through this, to stay with him until the end 

"I'll never leave, even when we get to Amfi, even when it seems dark, dreary, like nothing will ever be okay, I will never willingly leave you Jongdae." 

And Jongdae remembers those words, treasures those words, and the boy behind him, struggling through the marsh, tripping slightly over the tangled roots. 

Jongdae smiles at him, gripping his hand tightly, falling even more in some kind of twisted love, with every flash of arm light that involuntarily bursts through his fingertips and across Joonmyun's wrists, and yes, Jongdae thinks to himself this journey will be completely worth it, worth the pain and the sleepless nights, the bickering and the constant feeling of death surrounding them. Joonmyun is at his side, and will be when this is all over, and that’s all Jongdae really has to keep going. 

Even as they reach the Calla, leaving the marsh behind, Jongdae feels strong. Two weeks is not a long time to know someone, but it’s long enough to become attached, long enough to cling to each other in bare desperation, to make promises. 

Perhaps not everything is meant to stay beautiful. Perhaps not every promise is meant to kept, no matter how deep inside one’s heart it comes from. 

 

☁

 

Jongdae is tired, limbs aching and eyelashes fluttering ever so often as if about to close, feet dragging and a kind of weird guilt building in his stomach. 

Joonmyun. Jongdae is attached, too attached, and he needs it to stop, this thing they have with stolen kisses and using each other safety blankets. He feels guilty, wrong, especially when he sees Chanyeol and Baekhyun, in each other's faces and bickering. They fight a lot, even more than Baekhyun and Lu han do, but neither of them notices the long stares they throw at each other when one isn't looking. Neither of them notices the way they gravitate towards each other, even in their sleep. 

Jongdae notices. He notices everything. He notices the way Yixing tends to Kyungsoo each night, palms pressed to his forehead to relieve the mind numbing stress migraines. He notices Lu Han, estranged from the rest of the group and walking alone now, reading words off his bow and whispering them to himself, too full of his own pride to apologize to the closest thing that Elf has to a best friend. 

Jongdae notices Minseok staying in fox form constantly, fur falling off in patches along his tail, limbs looking tired as he curls himself up into Baekhyun's arms and virtually ignores the Calla. 

The Calla has been unforgiving, full of wind and storms, hyenas and harpies attacking them at every corner. It's tiring, this surviving thing, and Jongdae is guilty when he notices other things like his growing attachment to someone that he might die on, his own selfishness when he realizes that he's the only one out of them that doesn't sleep alone. 

It needs to stop, this Joonmyun thing. The imp doesn't deserve it, doesn't deserve to be swept into the arms of someone who will either die or be forced back into the royal service. Jongdae can't protect Joonmyun forever, can't hide the imp behind him while he slashes the throats of every dangerous animal that attacks them. 

In the end it isn't Jongdae who puts a stop to it. In fact, he doesn't even get a chance to open his mouth, Joonmyun waking up and brushing his hair back, genuine smile on his face for only a second before it falls, and he tells Jongdae they need to talk. 

There's a lull here, an aura of calm in the air, and they've settled behind one of the many rocky hillsides on the Calla, eating their only source of food, Lu Han's honey bread. Jongdae despises the bread, loathing the flavour after eating it for too many weeks, but the bread smells like Lu Han, smells like Gaelgorn faerin, and it's kind of nice to know that Lu Han's brought a food that seems special to him. 

Chanyeol and Lu Han are the only ones that seem to like the bread, Lu Han having eaten it his whole life, and Chanyeol saying it makes him nostalgic. Lu Han gives him a strange look at this, but they've been ignoring each other for days, being petty even in times like these.

Jongdae can't enjoy laughing at Lu Han and Baekhyun argue bread because he's being lead to an area away from the group, both of them ready to defend in case something attacks them. They are yet to see an elusive Calla wolf, but they take no chances.

"Jongdae, um." Joonmyun starts, licking his lips nervously and staring at Jongdae like he's unsure, and Jongdae hates when Joonmyun looks unsure. "This needs to end, this thing with us."

"I know." Jongdae says, blinking in surprise at Joonmyun's words. "I was just going to talk to you about the same thing."

"Oh thank Zafkra." Joonmyun says with a tiny relieved smile. "I feel guilty you know. Like we're stealing feelings from other people, we're being selfish when there shouldn't even be time for things like these."

"I understand. We can't cling to each other when everyone needs us." Jongdae agrees, and his heart hurts, but it's for the better. It's for the better. 

"So I guess, this was easier than I thought it would be." Joonmyun mutters, looking at Jongdae with a soulful look in his eyes, large and pure and beautiful.

"Why did you think it would be hard?" Jongdae says, and he puts a hand on Joonmyun's arm out of habit, looking concerned. "Everything will be the same. We just can't sleep together, or kiss or whatever. We can just be friends."

"No Jongdae. We can't. I don't think I'll be able to look at you and just see us as friends." Joonmyun says, and it makes Jongdae's heart sink as he finally understands what Joonmyun is really saying. "I want us to not talk to each other, just take a complete break and focus on living."

"But-" Jongdae stutters, and his voice comes out weak. 

"I need to take care of Kyungsoo." Joonmyun interrupts, and his eyes look sad, brimming. "Hyeri's death has hit him the hardest even if you can't tell, and I need to look after his needs. And I can't do that with all your needs."

"My needs?" Jongdae says incredelous. "What do you mean my needs? I'm the one that takes care of you constantly."

"No you don't Jongdae. You're clingy and you insist on taking care of me without bothering to ask if I can take care of myself." Joonmyun says slowly. "I don't want to fight, I want us to take this break or whatever it is on good terms. Let's go back."

"Thanks for telling me it bothered you. Thanks for just letting me do something you didn't want." Jongdae snaps, getting up and leaving Joonmyun alone. "You should have done this earlier if it's such a big deal to you. I was just doing what I thought was right."

"And so am I." Joonmyun calls out to him, but Jongdae is already out of earshot, grabbing a piece of bread out of Chanyeol's hands and eating like his life depends on it. 

Not all promises are made to be kept. 

 

☁

 

It’s calm. The mist muffles their footsteps as they walk, hushed conversation here and there, weapons hanging idly at their sides. Only Minseok seems readily alert, ears swivelling back and forth, claws digging nervously into a very annoyed Baekhyun’s forearms. 

Lu Han leads as usual, walking swiftly at the head of the group, alone and quiet. He looks collected and nonchalant, like nothing could go wrong, but Jongdae knows better. Knows that Lu Han is constantly on edge, hand never too far from his sword, ears trained with supersonic hearing. Always waiting, always watching, always listening. 

Jongdae is walking alone, trailing behind the group a bit. He watches Chanyeol pretend to listen to Yixing’s chattering. The Heiðrún Elf is chewing his nails, eyes boring into the back of Baekhyun’s head with an intensity that would normally make Jongdae laugh. Not today though. 

Jongdae is fuming, warring with himself, wanting to go over to where Joonmyun is walking with the other imp. Joonmyun is talking with Kyungsoo, acting as if last night had never happened, as if he hadn’t calmly told Jongdae that they needed a break. 

How the fuck is Jongdae even supposed to take a break when there’s barely even any of them here, when they’re trudging through a deadly mist on a mission from hell, when at any second they could be ripped from the Calladron and thrown into the afterlife. He’d wanted it, He’d wanted this break but not like this, not fucking like this.

Joonmyun had said back in the marshlands that he’d never leave, and Jongdae holds onto that even as he fights back tears, as he falls further and further back from the group. He tries to find it in himself to laugh when Minseok transforms in Baekhyun arms spitting at him as the other bats him away. 

The sounds of bickering, of Lu Han snapping at them to pay attention and stay on guard, the sounds of Joonmyun’s twinkling laughter. They’re all muffled by the mist, by Jongdae’s loud, overbearing thoughts. He feels far away from the rest.

Jongdae knows he should just walk over to Joonmyun, apologize to him, beg him for forgiveness, say sorry for being an overwhelming idiot, for believing that they were stronger, for taking him for granted. He can’t. Jongdae’s pride is too much, and even as his mind screams at him to fix things, he stays back, watches, uncharacteristically quiet. 

Jongdae is ready to ignore the group bickering, sighing softly to himself and focusing on the light noise of the ground crunching beneath his feet, and of the humming winds that attempt to cut through the thick clouds surrounding them. 

Then he hears it. A snapping noise, followed by the scuffling of a nose sniffing along the ground. A split second warning, brief, nearly unnoticeable. A split second of sheer terror before the mist explodes and Jongdae is thrown sideways, sailing through the air to land on a sharp rock. 

Calla wolves. Five of them, gigantic and powerful, fur glistening even in the dull sunlight, darting in and out of sight in the fog, snarling jaws and huge limbs. It’s Lu Han who jumps into action first, whipping out his bow, barking out orders; clear even in the chaos. 

“Joonmyun, Kyungsoo watch out, look behind you!”

The two imps don’t hear Lu Han’s warning, swallowed by the shrill trumpet of the wolf that lands on the two of them, and Jongdae chokes on his own blood, trapped by the rocky ground, paralyzed with pain and fear.

He tries to call out, tries to join Lu Han in his orders, but Jongdae can’t move. He can only watch, pain subsiding into an almost pleasant numbness as a single fang pierces through Kyungsoo’s heart, lifeless body dropping to the grass to be forgotten forever, last breath taken in a shaky, seizure like motion. 

Yixing streaks to Jongdae’s side, eyes wide as he surveys the damage, prodding and poking, using a ferociously fighting Minseok as cover against the wolves. 

“The wound is too deep right now. I can’t move you yet Jongdae and I can’t stay here.” Yixing is speaking quickly, loudly, but Jongdae can barely hear him, struggling to keep his eyes open. “I need to go. I need to help. Hang in there okay?”

Jongdae can only do what he thinks is a nod, eyes streaming with tears, watching Baekhyun fight for his life against a wolf three times his size as Chanyeol flies across the Calla on all fours, trying to hide but failing. 

Then it happens. A single wolf, the largest one, silver and beautiful, rising over the group as it rears on it’s hind legs, pouncing on Joonmyun like a cat pounces on a mouse. Teeth slashing through flesh, as the imp writhes helplessly, thrown in the air and caught, almost as if the wolf playing with it’s food. 

Joonmyun's loud shriek is barely heard, drowned out by the screams of the wolves, of the others, desperately trying to stay alive. 

The group is in chaos. Nothing is quiet, nothing is order, and no one really notices Joonmyun at first. No one notices Kyungsoo’s body beside him. No one notices his half mangled body, hanging from the mouth of the giant wolf, but Jongdae does. Mouth open in a silent scream, frozen in place, even as Yixing yells in his ear, tries to pull him away, to get him to move to safety. 

Silence. 

That's all Jongdae hears right now, like he's been caught in the blast of a nuclear bomb. Joonmyun's final cry is ringing in his ears like the fading sounds of a siren in the distance, but he feels nothing. No emotions are running through him, no tears fall. He’s frozen, legs stiff and eyes squeezed shut, unaware of his surroundings, unaware of anything but the anguish threatening to pour through him and out of him. Jongdae barely registers himself being carried, lifted off the ground by the strong arms of the human sorcerer.

He can hear screaming. Loud, shrill, desperate, and it takes him a while to realize that it's his own voice, never stopping, nearly silent to him, but deafening to everyone else. 

Hysterics.

 

☁

 

When Jongdae opens his eyes he’s on a bed of leaves, the giant ones of the trees back in Lei, and he can barely recognize Yixing through his blurry vision. He tries to sit up, but a gentle hand pushes him back down, and it’s then that Jongdae finally feels the pain of his injuries, making a strangled choking noise, blinking fast to try and clear his sight. 

“Jongdae don’t move.” Yixing’s voice is right in his ear, comforting, but too loud, and he winces away from it, trying to sit up again. He needs to find Joonmyun and make sure he’s okay. He needs to apologize to him for their fight. Yixing pushes him down again, threatening to have Lu Han bind him to the hard ground.

“Yixing, why can’t I see?” Jongdae manages to croak out, turning his head to try and see Yixing, and gagging back an intense need to throw up, world spinning and pain shooting up his spine.

"When the wolf threw you, both your head and back were severely injured hitting a rock." Yixing says, voice still too loud, and Jongdae deflates into the ground. He can barely remember what had happened back on the open calla, just remembers being thrown, and screaming and-

“Joonmyun.” Jongdae yelps, once again trying to get up from the ground, snarling when Yixing tightly grips his arm, unaffected by the feeble electricity escaping from Jongdae’s fingers. “I need to talk to Joonmyun.”

Jongdae can’t see Yixing, but he hears him sigh, and Jongdae knows the reality before he hears it, squeezes his eyes shut to fight the world, collapsing back on the rocky ground, fingers digging into the leaves. 

“Joonmyun’s dead Jongdae.” Yixing says quietly, as if afraid to break the news, but Jongdae just nods, laying back down and staring into the nothing that his eyes can see right now. The pain of his injuries is becoming weak, overcome by a sheer hopelessness, loss of faith in the days ahead.

"I'll never leave, even when we get to Amfi, even when it seems dark, dreary, like nothing will ever be okay, I will never willingly leave you Jongdae."

Not willingly, never willingly, but on bad terms yes. It still doesn't hit Jongdae right away though, and sleep takes over as Yixing chants something quietly to him.

 

\--------------------------  
♔; bravery ; : the quality that allows someone to do things that are dangerous or frightening : the quality or state of being brave.   
\--------------------------

The wolves don’t return that night, or the next, but Chanyeol can’t sleep, can’t even close his eyes, not when they’re so in the open like this, surrounded by the mist. He fails to see even ten feet away, and his heart pounds as he tosses and turns on the ground, knees brought up to his chest. The silence isn’t crippling tonight, but the fear is, screams fresh in his ears, blood swimming behind his eyelids.

The others beside him are fast asleep, wearied and spent, and though Chanyeol can feel the same fatigue they feel, he can’t shake his fear. He can’t stop the images of the tiny water sprite trapped between the jaws of a great monster, can’t stop the memories of Jongdae’s shrieks, shrill and awful piercing the air from invading his thoughts, living behind his eyelids as he closes them. 

Chanyeol doesn’t seem to be alone in his struggles of sleeping though, and he flinches at the sound of a soft whimper coming from his right. He sits up immediately, eyes wide, scrambling backwards until his back hits one of the tall ominous trees, thin and dead, shadows in the darkness of the fog. 

His fear is short lived however and he blinks in surprise to see a pair of eyes, glowing, deep, regrettably beautiful. Another kind of fear makes it’s way to Chanyeol’s surface, and he blinks slowly, breath coming out in a great swoosh. 

Something is wrong and the eyes come closer until the source is right next to him, and Chanyeol can’t look away, but he wants to. The only thing that stops him from crawling back to his sleeping spot and ignoring the presence next to him is the quiet voice, devoid of any snark, slightly wobbling as it tumbles out into the air. 

“I’m scared.”

In this moment, this late night fog, with the thin light of the moon barely peeking through, Baekhyun doesn’t look like the prince he usually does. He doesn’t have the passive arrogance he normally possesses, and his eyes don’t flash with contempt. Instead he looks vulnerable, drawn into himself, eyes shining with unshed tears and robes tattered, the scar from his torn earring seeming to stand out in the dim light. Chanyeol is overcome with the need to just pull him into his arms and hold him, to let him know that they will get through this, and everything will be alright. 

But Chanyeol can’t do that for him, because Chanyeol can’t even do that for himself, and he looks away from the Lei Elf, staring down at his hands instead, breathing hard, a sound that seems amplified in the dead quiet air. His own eyes are brimming full, ready to spill over. Their situation seems hopeless now, even more hopeless than it had when they’d started out, and Chanyeol’s ears droop, shoulders sagging. He lets himself slide down the tree, curling his arms around his legs. 

He doesn’t answer Baekhyun, but his body language does the talking for him, and he starts at a tentative hand on his shoulder, feels delicate fingers pry his hands away from his knees. He glances over to the Elf Prince in confusion, and his heart nearly breaks just looking at him, at the pain in his gaze, and the desperation in which grips one of Chanyeol’s hands in both of his, tears flowing now. 

“Please, just. I need someone right now. Please Chanyeol.” Baekhyun’s voice is strained, barely above a whisper, and Chanyeol just stares at him, breathing uneven, heart pounding in his throat as he fights to hold back the emotion and terror that’s been consuming him the whole night. 

Chanyeol can’t do it though, can’t act like he doesn’t care, like he doesn’t want to, and he slides his hand out of Baekhyun’s grasp, holding open his arms in a kind of weak invitation. If this were earlier in their journey, even a couple of weeks ago, he would have blushed at this kind of contact, but the way Baekhyun crawls into his lap and tries to melt himself into his body, shaking with the sobs he’s finally let go is heart wrenching. Chanyeol stills, wrapping his arms around Baekhyun’s thinning frame, burying his nose in hair that once soft, is now matted and disgusting, with blood and dirt. He doesn’t care though, can’t bring himself to care, stomach twisting at the pure anguish he feels coming from the Elf and from himself. 

They stay like this for a long time, silent and still, and for the first time in a while, Chanyeol feels a sort of comfort emerge in their embrace. He understands, thinks about Joonmyun and Jongdae, and the pain that they all feel, and he knows that within this group, on a journey like the one they’re embarking on, he doesn’t have room for petty fights, for feelings of hatred, and he doesn’t have the time for internal denial. All they have is each other.

When sleep finally takes them, finally blankets them in the depths of nightmares, to look upon the two, curled into each other, and clinging like the whole world depends on the feeling of the other, one would never guess the snapping tongues of the daytime, the annoyed shared looks. One would only see beings stripped of their own selves, lost in the fever of a pain that should not be theirs, that should not be anyone’s. 

Looking back, Chanyeol will say this is the night that changed everything, the night that made him feel a glimmer of hope, even in the suffering misery that consumed them all, and he thinks before his eyes finally droop and his tense fear subsides as he drifts into a twitching horrible sleep, that maybe, just maybe things might actually be okay.

Because right here, right now, someone who was once so strong, who once hid behind a veil of himself, is depending on him, needs him, and Chanyeol needs this, needs to feel like he means something, and is important, even though his mind is telling him that he’s the only one awake, the only one available and that it doesn’t really mean anything. 

Baekhyun’s soft breaths on his neck, and fingers gripping tightly to his shirt, even in his sleep tell him otherwise, and it’s with renowned hope that Chanyeol falls asleep. 

 

\------------------------------  
♔; cour•age; : the ability to do something that frightens one. : strength in the face of pain or grief.  
\------------------------------

 

“Being alone isn’t going to help you, you know.”

The voice is soft, quiet, familiar to it’s usual tone but less deceptive, less veiled than usual, and it’s that observation that has Jongdae glancing up from the rippling water, and at the face that’s hovering over him, looking down at him genuine concern.

“I'm not spreading my misery to the others this way." Jongdae murmurs, turning back to the water and continuing the therapeutic dragging of a twig through the clear stream, intent on seeing every tiny wave move in front of him. "It's easy to pretend while we're travelling, but it's harder when we're still."

He looks up at the Elf who's sat down next to him, and is relieved to not see the same sad and pained expression that the other's give him. Jongdae doesn't want their pity, he doesn't want their condolences. He drops the stick into the water and watches it splash before floating away, too far into the mist for him to see it any more. His ribs ache, screaming from his injury, healing fast, but not fast enough. Not enough.

"Sitting there and just watching everyone who has someone and I have no one now. And then I'm reminded that I didn't have to come on this journey. I'm not in the prophecy. I could have stayed back in Lei and fought off the mist with the rest of the Sprites there." Jongdae's voice comes out faster and higher pitched the more he continues, but he can't help it, the anxiety and the fear and the grief. It's all just too much. "I could not have even met him and I would never know, I would never know and now, here we are lost on the fucking Calla with no hope left and what do I see?"

Jongdae stares at Lu Han, eyes stretched wide open and lips curving almost manically. He's stopped talking, as if waiting for Lu Han to prod him into continuing, but Lu Han says nothing, crossing his legs and looking right back at him. Lu Han is patient.

"I see water." Jongdae spits out, sounding pained, voice almost choking in the back of his throat. "I see water and- and that's Joonmyun's magic you know. And everyone is so fucking happy to see water because our supplies are running low and it feels safe here. And I'm not happy. I'm not fucking happy because I'm just a pile of misery."

Jongdae is crying now, silently, tears rolling down his cheeks and hitting the water. The sound is amplified by the stillness of the air around them, the characteristic silence of the mist.

"So you loved him then?" Lu Han finally speaks, and he doesn't move to comfort Jongdae, doesn't hug him or even touch him. His tone betrays nothing but impassive curiosity, and usually Jongdae would detest it, would snap at him to be compassionate for once, but right now it's oddly soothing.

"I don't know." Jongdae chokes out, stifling a sob with his fist, not caring about the stray shocks stinging his tongue. "How could I have loved him? I only knew him for three weeks. But it hurts like I did."

"That's because love doesn't just decide to enter someone's heart on a schedule, Jongdae."

Jongdae is surprised by Lu Han's words, looking back up at him, eyes shining with dewy tears. He's curious now, leaning his head in his hands, breathing slowly.

"I've never understood that whole concept that love is something that must grow over time. 'oh you've only known them for a week how could you already like them so much?' You know? We feel other deep emotions for people so much quicker, so why not love?" Lu Han still sounds collected, and his voice has a serene effect. An artificial warmth seeps through Jongdae's skin, and a smile nearly tugs at the corners of his mouth at Lu Han's silent and subtle comfort.

"We feel hatred within seconds, and it's the opposite of love; a strong emotion in it's on." Lu Han continues, "So why not love someone quickly? See our circumstances. Being forced together, seeing the most awful things together. A being becomes attached, and it's very usually immediate, no matter the species. So did you love him?"

“I guess I did then.” Jongdae says, and he shakes himself, heaves in a deep breath. “I still do. Just because he’s not here doesn’t mean I don’t still love him.”

“That’s right.” Lu Han’s voice is gentle, more so than Jongdae has ever heard it, and Jongdae swear he sees the hint of a fond smile. “Jongdae, do you know what people who love each other want to see from the other?”

Jongdae shakes his head in confusion, but he doesn't say anything, just waits for Lu Han to continue. 

"They want to see them be happy." Lu Han says simply. "They want them to stop moping, and to talk to their friends and to do the job they're supposed to do."

"What friends?" Jongdae replies, sharper than intended. "There are no friends here."

"We're all friends here." Lu Han says, sighing deeply and settling into the thin yellow grass beside Jongdae. "We want you to come back and eat with us."

"We're all friends?" Jongdae mutters disbelievingly. "Are you and Chanyeol friends?"

Lu Han hesitates, blinking to himself, and Jongdae knows that not even Lu Han knows the answer to that. 

"I don't know." Lu Han says quietly. "But you're missing my point, Jongdae. Stop wallowing in misery. Kyungsoo didn't wallow in misery, Joonmyun didn't wallow in misery. Your injury is supposed to be healed soon, but we need to leave tomorrow."

"How am I supposed to walk?" Jongdae asks, and he sounds bitter, voice scathing. 

"You can shrink." Lu Han says shortly. "One of us can carry you until you can walk on your own."

"Doesn't that set us back?" Jongdae says uncertainly. "I won't be able to help if anything happens and two of us aren't that helpful."

"It'll be fine." Lu Han says, and he gets up, exhaling slightly and reaches out for Jongdae's hand to pull him up. "If we stay here we're just sitting out in the open waiting for the wolves to come back."

Jongdae falters, but he takes Lu Han's hand and let's himself be led back to where the others are sitting, some asleep and some eating tiny rations of the dwindling food supply. 

Yixing is as quiet as usual, but he smiles gently at Jongdae when he sits down, running his hands along his sides and humming, probably assessing his state. A warmth spreads along Jongdae's skin and he sighs, grateful to have someone like Yixing here, grateful that he wasn't left for dead back at the rock.

"You should lay down and rest." Yixing says gently, a suggestion, but the way he pushes Jongdae's shoulders tells him that it's not a suggestion but an order. "I think it's safest if you let Lu Han carry you. He's the most versatile person we have and you can fit in his pocket."

"Look at me, the great Kim Jongdae, riding in someone's pocket for a day." He mutters darkly, rolling onto his stomach like he's been instructed to and glaring at Baekhyun. It's all his fault, Jongdae has decided. It's all that asshole's fucking fault for being his employer. Jongdae could have had a normal life, maybe died in the mist at home with his family. 

Instead he's in the middle of a barren wasteland filled with wolves and other awful things in the middle of bone chilling mist with a bunch of bitchy Elves and a human that speaks as if he's on some diplomatic mission with every word. At least he still has Minseok. He still has his best friend, small and petite but perfect, ready to slap the daylights out of him when he's being stupid. 

He looks around for Minseok and finds him asleep, tail twitching nervously and ears swivelling, always on the look out. Jongdae stares at him, not able to get up and go over, and not able to call out either, not wanting to risk people asking why he's calling Minseok over, but Jongdae needs small animal snuggles, needs something to hold amidst the desperation he feels. 

Minseok doesn't wake up though, and Jongdae falls with Yixing quietly humming more warmth into him. Strangely enough, the last thing he remembers are Lu Han's words to him. 

"Jongdae, do you know what people who love each other want to see from the other?"

\----------------------------  
♔; loy•al•ty; : giving or showing firm and constant support or allegiance to a person or institution. ; the quality of being loyal to someone or something.   
\----------------------------

Chanyeol doesn't have time over the next few days to really think about his night with Baekhyun. They're too busy scrambling to catch up for lost time, not sleeping, not eating, just going. Always on edge now, the consequences of letting their guard down hanging over everyone's heads, making things tense.

Baekhyun is the same, the same snarky remarks, the same biting temper, and the same whining. He acts as though he never crawled into Chanyeol's lap, acts as if they barely know each other, but Chanyeol catches him more often than not, staring. The same heavy gaze that he'd received back in Lei, back when they knew nothing about each other.

It confuses Chanyeol, makes him feel lost. He's been having his nightmares again, huge looming shapes, bigger than the Amphaerie drowning out his sleep and pouring into his waking thoughts, always vague, never properly remembering.

He never says anything about them though, just quietly stores them away in case they turn out to be real like the siren nightmares. He's heard the voices of the Amphaerie so much, seen them glide through murky tunnels and weave through ruins so much that he feels like he could almost know them, almost see them standing right in front of him.

But there's no hope for it to stop. He doesn't have a protection prayer, doesn't have anyone close enough to him for a protection prayer, and it bothers him. Chanyeol knows the Amphaerie can see them, and he knows by some vague understanding of hand gestures and cloudy pools of water that it was them who sent the wolves.

The Amphaerie seem to be angry that they're surviving, confused about this channel into Chanyeol's mind. They've realized that he can see them too, and they seem to be arriving in his dreams less and less. He hopes he's made them nervous, hopes that maybe they'll leave him the fuck alone.

Chanyeol is terrified of the Amphaerie, and he almost wants them to slow down, almost wants to laugh at the thought of more wolves, because there's something worse to come ladies and gentlemen

Ever since the first day, Jongdae hasn't appeared from inside Lu Han's pocket, and it could almost be cute, the way he pops out to be fed bread from the Elf, but to Chanyeol it's heartbreaking. 

There's one terrifying thing that's become clear as they walk for days without seeming to get anywhere. They're lost. The wolves had put them off track in their haste to get to safety, to escape the hulking demons, and even Yixing seems confused, pulling up his magical map in mid-air and frowning at the original route. 

"We should at the tunnels by now." He says gloomily, making it disappear with an angry crack and glaring at the rocky ground. "I think we're accidentally heading towards the ocean, which is bad."

"So should we just try heading in a direction we think is right then?" Lu Han says, and he's fiddling with his bow again, a habit that Chanyeol has come to despise, annoying him for no good reason at all.

"That's really the only option we have." Yixing says quietly, and he sits down on the ground, blowing air through his nose in exasperation. "We should settle here for the night though. We can't lose any more time and we need rest."

As if on cue, Baekhyun yawns loudly, reaching for Lu Han's satchel and pulling out the meager amount of bread that's left. He stares at it hopelessly, like he's expecting it to suddenly double, and he looks up at Lu Han with pleading eyes.

"How is this going to be enough to survive the rest of the way and home?" He complains, tearing off a chunk and chewing it down, actions the opposite of his worried words. 

"It'll last if you don't fucking eat so much." Lu Han snaps, grabbing the other had of the bread from Baekhyun and breaking it into two pieces, handing one to a surprised looking Chanyeol. "We need to start rationing. Eating every two days. There's too many of us to keep eating what we have been."

"Well it's handy that the number of 'us' keeps dwindling isn't it." Baekhyun bites out, and his words are searing, cutting through the air like a knife. Even Lu Han looks shocked at his outburst, mouth snapping shut and eyes looking homicidal, but it's Jongdae who responds, appearing out of Lu Han's pocket with a deafening clap, landing in front of Baekhyun and looking terrifying.

"What the fuck did you just say you insensitive bastard?" Jongdae looks furious, fingers crackling with electricity waiting to burst, and Baekhyun scrambles backwards, eyes wide and mouth hanging open. "I'm so fucking sick of you making comments all the time about shit you shouldn't be saying anything about when you do nothing."

"I don't-"

"It's true. You don't do anything." Lu Han cuts in, stopping Baekhyun's excuse before it has the chance to breathe air. "I mean neither does Chanyeol, but at least he tries."

"I thought you said trying wasn't enough." Chanyeol pipes up from where he's been sitting silently next to Baekhyun. "Thought you just had to do."

Lu Han's eyes flicker to him, and for the briefest of moments Chanyeol thinks he sees regret, but then it's gone. "That doesn't matter right now. What matters is that Baekhyun has a fucking attitude that needs to change because no one here is going to deal with it any longer."

"He's not that bad." Chanyeol mutters, but he says it mostly to himself, only Baekhyun hearing. The Lei Elf glances at him quickly before looking back up at the other two, breathing shallowly and angrily. 

"Of course I have an attitude. I shouldn't be here. I shouldn’t be forced to fucking wade through water and witness death and be in constant danger. I should be at home safe in the shelters waiting for you lot to fix everything." Baekhyun snarls, and Chanyeol feels a flash of sympathy for him, because in Baekhyun's mind he doesn't belong here. He's lived his whole life with the notion that he should be doted on, that he should be protected and valued and that he is better. In Baekhyun's mind, his words are completely justified, and though Chanyeol doesn't agree with it, he's finally starting to understand it, to understand that Baekhyun simply doesn't know how to not be that way.

In Baekhyun's mind, his words are completely justified, and though Chanyeol doesn't agree with it, he's finally starting to understand it, to understand that Baekhyun simply doesn't know how to not be that way.

Yixing and Minseok stay silent, observing but not butting in. They're usually like this, sitting on the sidelines and only speaking up if they think it's absolutely necessary. Yixing looks like he wants to speak, but he also looks hesitant, like this is an argument that he has no place in, and in a way it is. 

It's something that Chanyeol's seen coming a long time, a standoff between Lu Han and Baekhyun that he thought would happen back in Lei, during the cold crackling tension that was their first conversation. 

"If you think you shouldn't be here, why don't you just go home?" Lu Han says with a note of finality in his voice, turning away from Baekhyun and sitting on the ground. Jongdae goes with him, and they talk quietly as if these words were never exchanged, as if Baekhyun isn't sitting still, shaking slightly. 

“You know, being an Elf is all about honour.” Baekhyun calls after him, voice carrying surprisingly well in the muffled, heavy air. “It’s all about honour, and you have none.”

“Excuse me?” Lu Han growls, whipping back around to face Baekhyun, and his face twists into an awkward looking sneer, unattractive and feral. “What do I care about honour. Honour is a lie.”

“Honour is how we conduct our lives. Respect only the deserving ones. Give honour to everyone and expect it in return. Loyalty. You have none of that. I may be some snobby brat that you hate but I have my loyalty, and I have my honour.”

"Honour is a lie. Death before dishonour? Blood is thicker than water? What is true honour, but the honour you give to yourself. What is true loyalty, but the loyalty you give to the individual; to the personality and very being, not loyalty and honour to which you are forced through tradition. Your entire system is a lie. If someone is kind to you, you're not indebted to them, you're not responsible to pay them back.” Lu Han pauses, eyes murderous now, glinting with a different light than they usually do, a dangerous one, void of any emotion but pure anger.

“You believe in your flimsy royalty? For what. You can see now that the second war hits you are suddenly nothing, thrown into the mist with no skills, no royalty, no fancy code or alliances. Where is your honour now, forest prince? or did you leave it back in the marshlands with your precious, precious robes? 

Or perhaps back on the slopes of the Calla with the water sprite. Do you think he died for honour? No he died because circumstance called for it, not because some higher order led him to it. So don't come fucking shoving your 'honour' down my throat because it doesn't exist, and never will"

Lu Han turns away again, this time not turning back or even acknowledging Baekhyun, and a note of silence rings through the air.

Baekhyun continues to shake, making small movements like he's about to get up, but falling back down again, confused. He glances to Chanyeol once, stares at him for a long time, for reasons unknown to Chanyeol, before reaching and taking his hand, squeezing it slightly in a way that's uncharacteristic and kind of frightening. 

"Thanks." Baekhyun says, and his voice sounds bright even if his eyes look dead. "I'll be going home now."

"What?" Chanyeol blurts out, gaping at Baekhyun, hoping that he's heard wrong. "You can't just go home."

"Yes I can." Baekhyun says smiling. "I'm not needed here. I don't want to be here, I'm going to walk home."

"With no food or water or protection." Chanyeol says, and his voice is hushed, words tumbling out quickly and nervously. "You can't."

"Yes. I. Can." Baekhyun says, punctuating each word, and the look he gives Chanyeol is fond. "I'll probably die whichever direction I go in, with you guys or home. So I choose home." He pauses. "Lu Han chooses home, and he's in charge around here. So off I go."

"Baekhyun." Chanyeol tries, but he stops his words when Baekhyun gets to his feet, waving to the edge of the tiny treed area they're hiding in and turning back, only once. 

"I'm going home now." He calls out to the group at large, eyes resting on no one, but on everyone. "Have fun."

Baekhyun disappears into the mist, walking confidently and briskly, and Chanyeol is left sitting in shock. He feels suffocated and confused, knows that Baekhyun is walking into a fog bank of death, knows the wolves will easily take someone alone, but he's torn. 

"Should we go after him?" Yixing asks tentatively, looking to Lu Han for guidance, but the Elf is silent, gazing after Baekhyun with a mild curiosity and some kind of relief splayed across his smug face, Jongdae sitting tiny on his lap. 

Minseok doesn't say anything, but he looks at Chanyeol, eyes betraying nothing of what he's feeling. Chanyeol sees it as a signal, an order almost, to go, and he confirms it when the sprite tilts his head slightly in the direction Baekhyun had gone in. 

"I'm going to go get him." Chanyeol says, and he glares in Lu Han's general direction. "Can I borrow your bow?"

"What so you can never return it again after being slaughtered by wolves?" Lu Han scoffs, and his eyes are dark when they meet Chanyeol's, that flash of regret from earlier not returning. 

"Oh I'll be back." Chanyeol says, and he's surprised at how self assured his voice sounds, at how confident his words tumble out, despite the shaking of his hands, and the sweat on his forehead. "I'll be back with your bow and with Baekhyun. He can't have gone far, and don't you dare say good riddance that he's leaving."

"Well I mean-" Lu Han starts, voice sounding sarcastic, but Chanyeol cuts him off with a wave of his hand.

"I always knew you didn't have a heart Lu Han, but not this bad." Chanyeol says impassively, in a way that mirrors Lu Han's own mannerisms, and there it is, the spark of bright gold in Lu Han's eyes, the concern that he's seen before. 

"Go then." Lu Han says, pushing his bow into Chanyeol's arms and giving him a long measured look. "Prove your worth useless Knight."

 

☁

 

Being in the mist with the others is one thing, but being alone is something that Chanyeol isn't sure he's okay with experiencing again. The silence is smothering here, pressing down from all sides, almost like the first time Chanyeol went into the mist, the first time he encountered a wolf. He walks without direction, scanning the ground for signs of Baekhyun, clutching Lu Han's bow close and breathing heavily, lungs on fire and eyes burning from how long he's kept them open, afraid to blink. 

He feels his steps faltering, wants to sit down and calm his breathing, make the pounding of blood in his ears just stop already, but he can't. He needs to find Baekhyun. 

A part of Chanyeol isn't sure why he's even out here, why he's even bothering chasing after someone who's hot and cold, someone who has outdated views and a superiority complex, but another nagging part of him tells him that of course he's risking his life to find someone who probably won't come back with him because he likes him.

He really does, has since the second he saw him. Baekhyun is beautiful, even with his words that make Chanyeol want to tear his tongue right at the seams, because strangely out of everyone, even Lu Han, Baekhyun has stuck with him the most. Even while complaining he glues himself to Chanyeol, claiming to despise everyone yet curling up next to the taller Elf at night when he thinks no one is watching. 

And Chanyeol will never forget the vulnerability in Baekhyun's eyes when he'd pleaded with him, will never forget just how soft he had felt cradled into his chest. 

The mist is thick, foggy, blowing in from all sides like a rolling cloud right now, and Chanyeol can barely see three feet in front of him, tripping over a branch that nearly sends him careening into a rocky pile. He ends up with his knee throbbing, cursing out loud and remembering Lu Han's words, useless repeating itself in his head, over and over. 

Screaming. Shrill screaming, off in the distance, or maybe close by, he can't tell, but it's screaming, familiar, terrifying, and Chanyeol sprints towards the sound, heart pounding, knee shrieking, and hands trembling as he loads the bow, holding it at the ready. 

Chanyeol isn't prepared for what he sees, isn't prepared for an image that will scar him for his entire life, skimming into his nightmares even on the brightest of nights, even when the stars shine over top of him and he has love on his side. 

Baekhyun looks unrecognizable, matted with blood and curled up into a ball, a wolf over top of him but he's alive, screaming, a sound that has Chanyeol's blood curdling and his hands wanting to come up to his ears. It's like sheet metal being dragged along a floor, a violin bow used wrong, and Chanyeol raises the bow, steadies himself, tries to steady himself, tries so hard. 

He's frozen again. Hands shaking so badly he can't even hold the cord back, arms like jelly and strength all gone. Chanyeol can't move, can't breathe, just stands there watching Baekhyun writhe on the ground in agony, watches the blood drain from his body and his convulsing slow, and then he hears it, a voice in his head, screaming in desperation, ordering him. 

"Chanyeol just shoot the fucking bow."

And Chanyeol does, aiming high, right for the monsters jugular, and his hand is steady now as he pulls back, as it pierces through fur, and flesh and bone, exploding into a flurry of golden fire. The wolf screams now, howls echoing back through the dense fog wall, lost among the vapour. 

He's too late. He's too fucking late because Baekhyun isn't breathing, isn't moving, body limp and mouth hanging open, and fuck, there's too much blood, one arm twisted back so far the bone is sticking out. Chanyeol crumples to the ground beside him, trying to find a sign of life, cradling him in his arms and lifting him up, praying to Zafkra that Baekhyun doesn't die, that he doesn't give up. 

It feels like a month, walking back to where they've set up camp, blindly, feet on autopilot, arms screaming from the dead weight of Baekhyun, bow hanging loosely from his back. There's blood everywhere, on Baekhyun, on him, on the ground, staining the gentle purple grass an ugly red, glistening even in the dreary light of the mist. 

Chanyeol doesn't remember much of getting back, barely registers Yixing nearly fainting at the sight of Baekhyun's mangled body, barely registers Lu Han standing in front of him after Yixing's taken him away. He feels faint, nauseous, pressure rushing in from all parts of his head, from all parts of his body, vision blurring and hands feeling numb. 

Lu Han is talking to him, but Chanyeol hears nothing, just hears the shrill screaming of Baekhyun, and the howling of the wolf. Lu Han seems to realize this, tugging on Chanyeol's wrist and pushing him down by his shoulders, and he doesn't let go, doesn't uncurl his fingers, but Chanyeol doesn't care. 

He turns to Lu Han with a weak smile, the world swimming in and out of vision, as the full brunt of his held in panic hits him, swaying forward and lurching, but accomplishing nothing but air. 

"I did it. I killed a wolf, I shot when I was supposed to." Chanyeol babbles, eyes dazed and wild as he stares at Lu Han, as he tries to make sense of what's happening around him, but he grins. "I was too late though, wasn't I? It's my fault again right?"

He doesn't hear Lu Han's answer though, falling forwards and not waking up until much later, consumed by the swirling mist, by the intense trauma he doesn't understand. 

\--------------------------------  
♔; at•tach•ment; : full of affection or fondness; the condition of being attached to something or someone, in particular.  
• affection, fondness, or sympathy for someone or something.  
\--------------------------------

Chanyeol isn't sure how he survives the next few days, isn't sure how anyone survives the next few days. He might not make it. Yixing had said solemnly. Even with my magic he might be too far gone.

The atmosphere should be awkward, should be tense, but it somehow isn't. Everyone is focused on whether or not Baekhyun will live, and Chanyeol should be blaming Lu Han, should be blaming Jongdae but he can't. He can't because he knows what it feels like to accidentally cause a death, knows that no matter what, it isn't their fault. They had every right to be upset with Baekhyun, and Baekhyun had every right to be upset himself, and to leave. 

The only blame lies in the wolf, in the Amphaerie, and Chanyeol feels a spark of pure hatred flow through him, clenches his hands into fists, and stares into the disgusting mist, stares across the moor and the shadows of a few trees in the distance. He holds back his tears, doesn't cry now. Chanyeol doesn't feel a sense of desperation, sitting next to Baekhyun and waiting, hoping he'll wake up. He feels a numb sense of need. Baekhyun needs to wake up because Chanyeol is selfish, and Chanyeol had just started to understand the Elf, and to become attached, and he can't have that torn away from him now. 

At least Baekhyun is breathing, laying shallowly on Yixing's overused leaf, limbs put back together and blood cleaned from his face and body. Those are the minor injuries, the minor things that can be taken care of right away, the broken bones and internal bleeding, gashes and bruises. It's the trauma that Yixing is struggling to fix, struggling to piece back together his very mind. Head damage is the hardest, Yixing had explained. It drains him of his power, makes his mind dizzy and his throat dry, and he borrows faerin from all of them, taking so much gold light from Lu Han that the Elf keels over out of exhaustion, waking up much later. 

He's borrowing power from Chanyeol today, sitting in front of him with his eyes closed, clasping both of Chanyeol's hands, drawing forth every bit of faerin he can get from deep inside. Yixing is shocked at how much faerin Chanyeol has, a rich red, flowing from him like flames, licking at Yixing's arms and face, hot and powerful. It's the laws, the Heiðrún laws that prevent the proper use of magic, that tell them not to use their full strength, and Chanyeol is full, brimming with it. He's ready to give it all up, to let Yixing take every last bit of energy from his body and transfer it to Baekhyun, to feel like he's somehow helping, somehow fixing the dying Elf next to him. 

Chanyeol wants to stay with Baekhyun while Yixing hovers over around his head, massages and chants, but Lu Han pulls him away, unexpected and confusing. Chanyeol is weak, teetering from the loss of energy, but he follows him, past where Jongdae and Minseok are sleeping, and behind the large rock. It's quiet back here, more so than the rest of the Calla and Chanyeol leans against the cool surface, fanning his face and attempting to stop the overbearing heat that's coursing through him. 

He looks at Lu Han with a kind of tired curiosity, taking in his exhausted demeanor, eyes drooping and golden hair greasy and matted. Lu Han is sitting cross-legged in front of him, hands clasped together in his lap like he's addressing a high council, eyes glittering gold, but a shade Chanyeol doesn't recognize, an emotion he can't quite read. 

"So um." Lu Han starts, and then stops, licking his lips and glancing behind him, a nervous habit they all have now. Look behind you. Look around you. Danger is everywhere.

"Why are you talking me?" Chanyeol says, and he tries to sound cold, but his voice just comes out sounding strained and uneasy, and he sighs, regarding Lu Han with a long, careful look. 

"Well, how are you feeling?" Lu Han asks in a stiff voice, scratching the back of his neck and looking awkward. He's trying, and it's kind of nice, but now isn't the time. Chanyeol can't deal with Lu Han's on and off feelings and morals. 

"Why do you care?" Chanyeol mumbles, hoping that Lu Han will just leave him alone, will let him go back to Baekhyun's side to listen to his soft breathing, to make sure he still is breathing. 

Lu Han doesn't say anything, just gives Chanyeol another one of his piercing measured looks, and it's maddening the way he just sits there, no biting remark, not even the flash of fake concern he usually sees. It drives Chanyeol crazy, just sitting here in silence with his thoughts threatening to make his very heart cave in. If Baekhyun can't act like his snarky self, someone has to. 

"Spit it out Lu Han." Chanyeol says, irritation seeping into his voice, and Lu Han hesitates, but he's suddenly crawling close to Chanyeol, getting up on his knees and hovering in front of him in a way that makes him kind of nervous. 

"I'm going to hug you." Lu Han says, and his voice sounds metallic, tense and Chanyeol almost wants to laugh because the Elf looks so sincere about it, eyebrows creasing and bottom lip jutting out slightly. "Yes I'm going to hug you. You need to be comforted and I'm bad with apologies."

Chanyeol leans backwards, as if molding himself to the rock and just stares at Lu Han. This is new, this Lu Han. He looks like he's actually trying, to be nice, or whatever he's aiming for, and Chanyeol relaxes, opening his arms dramatically and rolling his eyes.

"Hug me then you fucking idiot." He says, beckoning Lu Han forward. Lu Han awkwardly wraps his arms around Chanyeol, and it's painful almost, how he squeezes him once and pulls back as if on fire, eyes doubtful.

"Congratulations." Chanyeol says weakly, and this could almost be funny, will maybe be funny later, but Baekhyun is dying and Chanyeol can barely breathe, let alone laugh. "You have a soul."

"I'm sorry." Lu Han says, and he's frowning deeply, words coming out slowly, as if he's afraid to trip on them. "I've been kind of horrible to you since we first met."

"You kidnapped me." Chanyeol points out, and he does feel a better, resting his face on his palm, leaning forward sleepily.

"If I hadn't kidnapped you, you would have died in the mist."

"You still kidnapped me."

"I had to."

"I know. I know." Chanyeol says, and he exhales shakily, closing his eyes and running a hand through his hair, wincing at its disgustingness. They need to find clean water soon. 

"I know it's not your fault Hyeri died." Lu Han continues, and his emotions are on his face now; guilt, worry, insecurity. "I was just-"

"We were all upset. Things happen. People say things." Chanyeol says shrugging and standing up, ready to go back and be by Baekhyun's side, mind flying away from the current conversation and into thoughts of his and Baekhyun's arguments, confusion over his apparent attachment. "It's okay."

"Okay." Lu Han says, almost to himself, and he nods, also to himself, smiling only the tiniest bit, gentle and genuine. 

☁

 

When Baekhyun wakes up, Chanyeol is asleep, holding one of Baekhyun's hands in his, lips pressed to the tips of his fingers. Baekhyun doesn't notice at first, eyes staying closed and breathing increasing rapidly, before his system calms and his eyes flutter open. He feels heavy, body thrumming with some kind of warm magic that feels almost familiar, yet so different from how his body usually is. Baekhyun tries, and fails to lift his arms, getting frustrated when he can't move anything, can't even turn his head. He's too weak, too tired, and sleep seems like such a good option right now, though his brain is fuzzily arguing with him that he's been asleep for too long, that he has to wake up or Lu Han will yell at him. 

The ground feels hard against his back, uncomfortable and not what he's used to, and Baekhyun frowns, opening his eyes for real this time and turning his head, slowly, blinking away the dizziness, the blurring of his vision and the pressure that feels like it's closing in on his eyelids. He gives up halfway, breathing out harshly, coughing out the dryness in his throat, jolting when the action causes a spike of pain to shoot through his spine, eyes welling up with unwanted tears. 

His hand feels warm, and that's weird too, because the other one doesn't feel warm, but Baekhyun can't bring himself to care because his arms are so heavy, and his back hurts. He tries to talk, to call out to Yixing to help him because it fucking hurts, but nothing happens, just a squeak that throws him into a painful coughing fit that has him curling up in pain, turning his body towards the warmth he feels tingling through his hand. 

Baekhyun jolts in both shock and pain when he rolls into something solid and warm, eyes shooting open, still brimming over with tears. He meets eyes, wide and familiar, before the figure next to him is sitting up quickly, gripping his hand tightly and staring at him. Baekhyun doesn't like being stared, it makes him uncomfortable, but his mind isn't working right, and his memory is confused. He should knows this beautiful Elf in front of him, should know why he feels so sick, so sluggish, but he can't right now. 

Baekhyun drags himself into a sitting position, trying to focus his ears on what this Elf is saying to him, catching words here and there, but only one phrase reaches home, swimming through the jumble of nonsense and rumbling into his ears, deep and lovely. 

"You're alive." The Elf says, and he touches Baekhyun like he's made of glass, holding his hand gently and keeping him upright with the other, which Baekhyun is grateful for. Without he would probably collapse back down, and that would hurt probably. "I thought you were going to die but you're alive."

That's when Baekhyun remembers. The pain of being thrown through the air, the feel of teeth slashing through his skin, and the sound his arm had made when the bones cracked. He remembers the Elf too, Chanyeol, Chanyeol streaking out of the mist and shooting an arrow before he'd blacked out. 

"Chanyeol." Baekhyun croaks, and starts coughing again, tongue on fire and throat constricting. He wants to say a lot of things, wants to get this intense feeling in his chest out, but all he ends up saying is, "Water. Need water."

Chanyeol's eyes go wide and he scrambles, returning with a flask that isn't his own in his haste, handing it to Baekhyun. But Baekhyun is too weak, and he drops it, large eyes staring at it as if he can't comprehend why it's on the ground, movements slow. Chanyeol has to pick it up himself, tipping it into Baekhyun's throat and making sure he drinks it all, rations be damned. 

If he didn't feel so confused and weak, Baekhyun would have complained, would have fought with Chanyeol to drink on his own. A Prince should never be babied like this, a Prince needs his dignity. But the water feels so nice going down his throat, and he's so cold, and Chanyeol is so warm, and Baekhyun can't even bring himself to make a comment, to make an excuse for why he suddenly glues himself to Chanyeol, climbing into his lap and ignoring the way his body screams at him for doing so.

He cranes his neck to look up at Chanyeol, who looks a combination of confused, relieved and nervous, and he smiles. The wide face changing smile that crinkles his eyes and makes his lips shape into a square, and he does something he rarely ever does. 

"I'm alive." Baekhyun says, clearer now that his throat isn't trying to choke him with dryness, and his voice sounds amazed, like he's never experienced being alive. "Thank you."

Chanyeol doesn't answer Baekhyun because Yixing is suddenly sitting next to them, features pushed into something that also resembles relief, plucking him off Chanyeol easily and running a hand over his forehead, humming a tune that Baekhyun is used to by now. He feels the warmth run through him, and it feels different than when Yixing had healed his leg, less faded yellow and more fiery red, and it's hot, so hot but also so nice, senses exploding with the smell of a crackling fireplace. It's nice, and Baekhyun smiles again, delirious off the feeling running through his veins, barely registering Yixing's calm voice telling him to rest. 

He feels secure, still smiling because he's alive, falling into a deep sleep, hands unconsciously clutching at something that feels so safe and warm, so warm. 

 

☁

 

"Is he delirious?" Chanyeol frowns, looking down at the heavily slumbering figure in his lap with concern, hand resting on Baekhyun's head gently. "He was acting so weird when he woke up."

"How so?" Yixing asks, fingers intertwined with Minseok's to pull faerin from him, a rusted orange vapour that smells like the citrus fruit back in Heiðrún. 

"I don't think he recognized me at first." Chanyeol muses, watching Minseok frown when his faerin is too low for him to transform. "He was also being nice."

Yixing laughs, but it isn't condescending, just mildly amused. "Everyone has the capacity to be nice, Chanyeol." He says, lifting Baekhyun's head up slightly to whisper a pain relief chant into his ear, laying him back down gently. "Even Baekhyun."

"I know that, it was just strange. Do you think he remembers that I helped him?"

"Maybe." Yixing says, but he puts a gentle hand on Chanyeol's shoulder and smiles at him comfortingly. "He's on his way to being healthy now. He'll need someone with him, and me and Lu Han are going to go off on our own tomorrow for a bit."

"On your own?" Chanyeol echoes, eyebrows shooting up. "Where?"

"We're going to travel a bit in the direction we were heading, see if we can figure out where the tunnels are." Yixing says, and he's dripping orange faerin into an empty flask, sealing it with a wave of his hand. "It'll be easier for Baekhyun if we can just take a straight route there without wandering around. He can't recover if we're constantly lost and in danger."

Chanyeol nods, wondering how they're going to fare with just him and the sprites for protection - or just him and Minseok he discovers when Jongdae refuses to let Lu Han go without him, disappearing into his pocket and not coming out. He just hopes Baekhyun doesn't sleep the whole time, mentally shaking over having only Minseok for company.

He's barely spoken to Minseok, some of it due to the fact that Minseok stays as a fox most of the time, and some of it due to the fact that Chanyeol is awkward and Minseok doesn't seem to trust anybody.

Yixing, Lu Han and Jongdae leave in high spirits, and even Jongdae seems optimistic, smiling at Chanyeol gently and telling him how glad he is that Baekhyun is alive.

"He may be a bitch, but I've known him since we were both young." Jongdae says, and his eyes light up at the memories. "He was always a little shit, but me and Minseok have been with him a long time and I don't think I could handle losing another person so close to me."

Chanyeol isn't sure what to say, so he just nods awkwardly, which gets a small chuckle out of Jongdae, and an awkward hug from Yixing. Lu Han just sort of looks at him, and nods, but Chanyeol understands their strange friendship by now and grins at him from where he's sitting beside a sleeping Baekhyun.

"Don't die on me okay?" He calls, and Lu Han actually laughs. He doesn't answer back but the twinkling in his eyes leaves a promise. 

Chanyeol almost forgets in his brief happiness that the worst part is yet to come.

☁

 

Nothing happens the first day of waiting aside from Baekhyun complaining weakly that the faerin Chanyeol is sprinkling (as per Yixing's instruction) isn't as nice as the 'healing stuff' that felt warm and red. Chanyeol grins wide, and Baekhyun shoots him a weird look over his meager piece of bread. Baekhyun's snark is back, and he's returned to making sarcastic comments and complaints, but it only makes Chanyeol smile wider, makes him full to the top with relief because Baekhyun is alive, and Baekhyun is going to stay alive. 

Minseok just quietly observes them, looking bored and on edge, but Minseok is always on edge really, as if he's always expecting the worst.

Chanyeol is on edge too, but for different reasons, nervous about the lack of nightmares, and the lack of knowledge of what the Amphaerie are up to, images of Lu Han and the others mangled and on the brink of death swimming through his mind. He has to will himself to not think about it, bring himself back to the present where Baekhyun, is hanging off his arm and telling him that he should cut his hair. 

 

☁

 

The second day of waiting has Baekhyun walking around, looking like a toddler first using his legs, grinning brightly and forcing Chanyeol to help him keep steady, becoming dead weight and whining at Chanyeol until the Heiðrún Elf gives up and carries him back to his tattered leaf bed. 

"You're heavy." Chanyeol complains, just for something to say to ease the anxious thoughts from crawling up into his mind from his chest. "I'm never carrying you again."

Baekhyun just flops over his knee, looking up at him and smirking, something so very Baekhyun that Chanyeol almost despises him again, getting ready to push him off.

"You carried me back though." Baekhyun says, voice sounding serious even as his smirk stays. "At least that's what Minseok said."

Chanyeol shoots a napping Minseok a glare before turning his attention back to Baekhyun and sighing. 

"Okay I did but-"

"I'd call you Prince charming but I'm both the Prince and the charming one around here." Baekhyun cuts him off, and he's laughing again. 

"Why are you in such a good mood." Chanyeol grumbles, ignoring the fast beating of his heart and the constricting of his chest, because Baekhyun is cute and he can't get any more attached to this confusing creature. 

"Because I'm alive." Baekhyun says as he sits up, looking up the tiniest bit to meet Chanyeol's gaze. "I'm grateful for it." He pauses. "I'm grateful for you."

Chanyeol's heart does some weird thump that isn't appropriate, and he pushes down all the thoughts and words he wants to say and settles for grinning, the kind that stretches his entire face and shows all his teeth. 

"I missed being pissed off at you everyday." Chanyeol says, and Baekhyun hits him playfully on the arm, wincing a little bit when it pulls on his still sore shoulder, but it's gone a moment later. 

"You love me."

"That's debatable." 

"You're on your way to loving me." Baekhyun says, and it doesn't make sense the way he says it, confidently and calmly, dragging Chanyeol down and insisting they sleep. 

 

☁

 

The third day of waiting is when it happens, when the strange tension breaks, leaving Chanyeol's chest heaving and lungs empty of breath. 

They're alone, Minseok having gone to the same alcove behind the huge rock where Lu Han had dragged Chanyeol a week prior, supposedly to sleep, saying with a wistful note in his voice that he misses when they hated each other because it was a lot quieter back then. 

Chanyeol wants to argue with that because even when they hated each other all they'd done is bicker, but Minseok ignores with a wave of his small hands, disappearing into the mist. Chanyeol is a little nervous, being left alone, and Minseok being alone, but Minseok insists he'll be fine, says with a confident tone that the others will probably return with good news tonight. 

It happens when they're sitting together, trading stories of their childhoods, Baekhyun's marginally more interesting with his tales of his first council visits, first time meeting the Heidrun royal family. It's when Baekhyun talks about home that Chanyeol doesn't see a haughty Prince, but someone who's smart, someone who's been raised into dealing with the fragile politics of the Elven kingdoms. Baekhyun knows what he's talking, eyes lighting up as he explains how the class system in Lei works, explains the relationship between them and the lake, borrowing faerin from the faeries. 

"That's where faerin stems from." Baekhyun is saying, but Chanyeol isn't fully listening, too busy taking in the different parts of his face as they move, animated and beautiful. "They release it from their bodies when they breathe, and we take it in through our skin. That's wh the natural faerin is so strong in Lei. It's the homeland of the faeries."

"So we're like trees." Chanyeol blurts out dumbly, and he opens his mouth to say something to sound less stupid, but Baekhyun laughs and it's all okay. 

"Kind of exactly like that actually." Baekhyun says, nodding his head. "We drink it up greedily. But we need to let it just run it's course. That's why Gaelgorn worries me so much. It's not that they use the magic freely, it's that it's trapped, unable to return back to the faeries naturally."

Chanyeol remembers the Gaelgorn palace and the way the faerin had just hung in the air, clinging to everything around it, and frowns. Lu Han is stubborn, more stubborn than Baekhyun even, and if they make it out of this alive, things are going to get tense. Chanyeol keeps frowning, thinking about how he considers everyone here friends, but he doesn't know if they consider him that, worries about the rifts in between the kingdoms, the different alliances. 

Lu Han, Baekhyun and Yixing are people of power, of high status that can make changes, but Chanyeol is no one, just a lower class Knight, and a failure of one at that. 

Chanyeol shakes himself from his thoughts and looks at Baekhyun, waiting for him to continue speaking, but Baekhyun is giving him the look, the heavy gaze that he'd first given him, and Chanyeol swallows thickly. 

And then it happens, slowly, Baekhyun keeping his eyes locked onto Chanyeol and crawling into his lap, looking determined and serious before sliding his hands into Chanyeol's hair and leaning in, hesitating only slightly before pressing his lips to Chanyeol's. It's quick, just a brief press of lips before he's pulling back, looking at Chanyeol with an unsure gaze, and Chanyeol freezes, heart hammering and brain fuzzy and confused. Baekhyun's lips are just as soft as Chanyeol initially thought, and he feels like his lips are burning where they'd been touched.

"What?" He says, confused and already breathless, but happy. So happy. 

"Don't think about it." Baekhyun mutters, and he's still so close that Chanyeol can feel his breath, and Chanyeol would laugh if he wasn't sitting frozen with shock.

"But." 

"Just don't think about." Baekhyun says, and he sounds so persuasive, voice soft and eyes even softer, so Chanyeol doesn't think about it, just leans forward to meet Baekhyun. It's innocent at first, close mouthed and exploratory, Chanyeol leaning back and balancing himself on his hands, unsure of what to do with them. 

Baekhyun is eager, sliding his tongue past Chanyeol's lips and licking into him enthusiastically, hands tugging at his hair. They break apart again, but only for a second before Baekhyun kisses him again, hot and deliciously wet, hands sliding down his chest to push him backwards, gasping when Chanyeol tugs on his bottom lip. 

It's Baekhyun rolling his hips that has Chanyeol properly breaking away, sitting up quickly and breathing heavily. Baekhyun's hands are still pressing down heavily onto his chest, and he smirks at Chanyeol, falling off his lap and onto the ground next to him. 

"I win." Baekhyun says, flopping onto the ground and flinching when he lands too hard on his spine. He pulls Chanyeol down next to him and curls up in the same way he usually does, devoid of snark and like nothing even happened. 

"Don't think about it." Baekhyun repeats, and Chanyeol listens, wrapping his arms around him and trying desperately not to think of anything. 

 

☁

 

The others return the next morning, early enough that the sun hasn't risen, miraculously unharmed, but exhausted, and Yixing nearly keels over he's so tired, draping himself across an unhappy Minseok and staring at the sky. 

"We found them." Yixing says yawning, and he looks ready to go to sleep, leaning back and closing his eyes, but he sits up quickly eyeing Baekhyun and crawling over to him. "How's your condition."

"I'm fine." Baekhyun says, and he grins, dutifully holding out his arms and staying still while Yixing checks him over. "Chanyeol was good at helping me cope. Stress relief and all that."

He says the last part with a wink in Chanyeol's direction, but says nothing more, just waits patiently for Yixing to finish, devoid of petty comments. 

"You're being nice." Lu Han comments, sitting down next to Chanyeol and fixing Baekhyun with a suspicious glare. 

Baekhyun's face falls when Lu Han speaks and he fixes him with his own glare, the one that Chanyeol doesn't like. 

"Yes well Yixing here saved my life and I believe in respect, amazingly." Baekhyun says, dislike seeping through in his words, and now Chanyeol can tell the difference, can tell how he sounds talking to someone he dislikes versus someone he does like. Baekhyun pauses after his words before adding, "Chanyeol first though. I would be dead if it weren't for Chanyeol."

Lu Han blinks at Baekhyun, but doesn't answer him, turning to Chanyeol and patting him on the shoulder. 

"Was he annoying while I was gone?" Lu Han says, and his lips are quirked up into an almost smirk, making Chanyeol sigh. 

"No he was fine." 

"What a miracle." Lu Han sighs sarcastically, placing the back of his hand on his forehead. "Truly."

"Since when were you two friends?" Baekhyun asks, and he's passing it off for mild curiosity, but his face seems anything but disinterested, eyes narrowing as he glances between the two.

"We kissed and made up." Lu Han says offhandedly, dismissing the conversation with a wave of his hand and getting up, heading over to Minseok and crouching beside him, saying something in a hushed, urgent tone that Chanyeol can't catch. 

Baekhyun is fuming, something that isn't uncommon for him and Lu Han, but they haven't even fought, and Chanyeol can't figure out why the other is so irrationally angry, attitude coming back in full swing when he snaps at Yixing to hurry up.

They're left alone, and Chanyeol frowns at Baekhyun disapprovingly. "Why are you acting like this? What's the point?" He says, shaking his head.   
He didn't do anything really."

"I hate him." Baekhyun spits out, looking livid, and Chanyeol wants to question further but Baekhyun is glaring at him now, temper triggered and eyes flashing.   
"Just don't worry about it. Don't think about it. It's nothing."

"You said don't think about it the other day to me." Chanyeol blurts out before realizing what he's saying, mentally cringing. He can't take it back now, so he continues, "Was that nothing too?"

"Yes." Baekhyun says simply, and he too dismisses the conversation, leaving Chanyeol sitting by himself, confused and angry. 

 

☁

 

Chanyeol sleeps alone that night, curled up by himself and feeling strangely cold, refusing to admit that Baekhyun's words hurt more than they should have, wondering just where he's gone wrong. 

But there are more pressing matters, more important things to think about. They leave early in the morning, or what Chanyeol supposes is early morning, unsure when everything is either sort of light or very dark, a side effect of the dense atmosphere. 

Yixing leads the way as usual, having caught his bearings accurately now, walking swiftly and confidently. 

"We didn't run into any wolves, but we heard howling." He informs them seriously, a warning. "Stay on guard. We should stay in pairs, so I'll walk with Minseok. Chanyeol, stay with Baekhyun, you're the stronger of the two."

Yixing sounds so somber, so serious, that Chanyeol shudders in fear, wondering what's in store for them, thinking about the nightmare from a while back that involved something large, looming, terrifying. 

"The tunnels are underground, and we don't know anything about them, so we will need to stick together as soon as we enter them." Lu Han adds, tense and nervous, and Chanyeol finds himself thinking that this is it, the final stretch.

None of them know what to properly expect, none of them know what exactly lies at the end of the tunnels, deep in the ruins of Amfi. All they know is that they have to be careful, they have to stick together. 

"Chanyeol." Lu Han calls out, walking over to where he's standing lost in his thoughts, chewing on his already destroyed nails, something that's probably not sanitary considering the last time he touched a washcloth. Lu Han looks hesitant as he approaches Chanyeol, nervous even when he grips his wrist and pulls him away to somewhere secluded, and Chanyeol doesn't miss the look of clear dislike on Baekhyun's face, still not understanding what it is this time. 

"We're going to try something before we leave." Lu Han says slowly, unraveling a piece of crumpled and dirty parchment, full of words that Chanyeol can't read from where he's standing, motioning for Chanyeol to sit down.

"You consider me your friend, yes?" Lu Han asks, and even though he's agreeing with his own question, he doesn't sound sure, looking at Chanyeol almost imploringly. 

"Yeah." Chanyeol replies, and he's sure of it now. They are friends, they have been since he'd stayed in Gaelgorn, and they are now, even after everything. "Yeah we are."

"Okay good." Lu Han says, and he coughs slightly, waving the paper weakly in the air. "This is the Friend's Prayer."

"Oh." Chanyeol says, eyes going wide and voice wavering, and he breaks out into an ear splitting grin. "The Amphaerie won't be able to see us any longer."

"Exactly." Lu Han says, placing the parchment in his lap and holding out his hands to Chanyeol, waiting for him to take them. Chanyeol does, placing his palms over Lu Han's upturned ones and looking at him expectantly, smiling with relief and with hope when Lu Han begins to read and the faerin bursts from both their fingertips, gold connecting with red and creating multicoloured sparks, sinking into their skin. 

They're invisible to the Amphaerie now, protected and prepared for an ambush, Yixing talking over the spell that will calm the mist. He also explains some other things, some solemn things that they all know will have to be faced, be dealt with. 

Calladron will probably be in ruins, will probably need to be rebuilt from the ground up, cities fixed and governments reestablished. But they all agree with what Yixing proposes: they will not erase history this time, and they'll work towards reuniting the Kingdoms. Chanyeol is surprised when both Lu Han and Baekhyun agree to the truce, to the merging of their systems, but he worries about the Heidrun government, whether or not they will see fit to the plans of the two princes. If the government still stands, that is. 

 

☁

 

There is no worry of not being able to see when a plan has been laid out beforehand. They are smart, hungry, laughing, ready. The power of friendship cannot stop fire. Hiding in daylight where the shadow overcomes the sun, and they shall perish. The laughter of Amphaerie sounds louder than even the largest church bell. 

☁

 

The mist is thinner here, and Chanyeol can see the tunnels up above, can see the first source of clear, running water they've come across in a long time, a roaring river, separating Calladron from the forgotten lands, and from there, the vast unexplored ocean.

They stop to bathe, thinking nothing of the sunlight peeking through the mist, thinking nothing of the unnatural stillness of the water, or the lack of general wildlife. 

They're used to seeing nothing, hearing nothing, being shrouded in clouds of fear that they barely take the chance to even stay on the lookout, even laughing, re assured, optimistic, enthusiastic. 

The end is near, just one more step, just one more fight to the finish. They have it all planned out, with Chanyeol, Yixing and Baekhyun sneaking deep into the ruins, to the dripping caverns where Hongbin the Necromancer had chanted his spell some time before. Lu Han, Jongdae and Minseok are to stay outside, to hold off the hell creatures that are the Amphaerie. 

It won't be easy, and they know, they know that someone may not make out alive, be it by Amphaerie or by uttering the poisonous chant, but they're satisfied. 

Baekhyun still weighs in the back of Chanyeol's mind, beautiful and heartbreaking, but he doesn't dwell, doesn't have the time to dwell, not in circumstances like these, not when the Calladron is at stake, his Kingdom at stake, their very lives at stake. 

There is no room for petty romance, that can wait until after, until they travel home, fatigued but grateful. It's then that they can argue it out, that they can deal with the politics of Calladron and the politics of their own problems. 

They sit on the riverbank, bathing in the sun and feeling grateful that the mist is thin, that they can see all around them, crystal clear and glaringly beautiful, reflecting off the surface and the river and off their irises. It's comforting to be able to see, to be able to keep guard without thinking of what's going to come tumbling out of something they can't see, out of the death of the fog. 

The one place they never think to look is up. 

\---------------------------  
♔; drag•on; : a mythical monster like a giant reptile; typically fire-breathing and tends to symbolize chaos or evil; associated with water, fertility, and the heavens.   
\---------------------------

The only warning they get is the sun disappearing, blanketing them in darkness, the shadow of two colossal sized shadows, like wings over top of them. And then the ground is on fire, scorched and burning, screams echoing out of them and drowning in the river. 

It lands, huge, overpowering, eyes bigger than moons and glowing hotter than the sun above, but the sun is dimming now, the mist returning in billowing like the smoke from a forest fire. It's jaw is huge, teeth long and curved and dripping with saliva. But it's also majestic, beautiful, green wings spanning further than anything Chanyeol has ever seen, than anything he's ever faced. 

It's let out a sound unlike anything Chanyeol has ever heard before, deep and beautiful, yet earsplitting and horrible, and Yixing's eyes widen beside him in pure, unadulterated terror, unable to believe what's in front of his eyes. A myth, said to not exist, more erased history, except this time it's lethal, unknown to anyone and yet known to all. 

"Dragon." He whispers, sounding entranced, taking a step backwards before the world explodes around them and Lu Han is screaming louder than Chanyeol has ever heard him scream.

Run.

And they do run, tripping and falling, desperate and terrified, running for their lives and towards the gaping entrance of the tunnel, slipping on the moist ground, Baekhyun crying in pain as he strains muscles that should not yet be strained, Minseok howling as he transforms into a fox, darting between their legs and in front of them, scampering. 

It's not enough, not fast enough, and the flames light up the trees around them, and Chanyeol squeezes his shut in fear, trips backward and crawls across the ground, not knowing if anyone's alive, not knowing. 

He does open them, looks to see the dragon looming above them, above Baekhyun who's on the ground, alone, far away from them and shrieking for help. Shrieking for anyone to help, but they can't. They don't know how, aren't equipped to fight a dragon, even with Jongdae and Lu Han using their faerin as weapons, shooting crackling bolts of lightning and shattered arrows of pure gold. 

Chanyeol feels his legs give out beneath him, feels his knees crash painfully into the ground, and the pain is excruciating, but he can't do it, doesn't know how to help. 

But Baekhyun is floundering on the ground, still weak, still helpless, and Chanyeol can't see it happen again, can't watch his mangled body fly through the air or hear his shallow breaths that don't even seem like breaths. 

There's a voice in his head screaming at him to do something, screaming at him to move, to fucking move and this time it isn't Lu Han's voice screaming at him, it isn't the power of someone else's words, but his own. His own voice making him barrel forward, ignoring Lu Han's shrieks of 'what the fuck are you doing you idiot', stopping in front of Baekhyun and standing his ground, staring into the dragon's orb-like eyes with both of his. 

He doesn't know how it happens, not quite, but he does know that it's triggered by the dragon opening it's mouth wide, blazing heat enveloping Chanyeol and igniting him, flames licking his entire body. He closes his eyes and waits for the pain, waits for the sky to turn black and his vision to disappear, but nothing happens. 

He feels nothing, sees nothing but the roaring orange and deep reds, the piercing blue of the scorching flames, but there is no pain, there are no screams, no bright light falling out of the darkness to tell him where to go. 

In fact, the flames surrounding him feel almost nice, warming him up and making him lightheaded, as if he could float into the sky and above the dragon. He thinks he does, and maybe this is death he thinks, watching the faerin seep from his body, watching it flare up and join the heat that's now dancing across his skin, pouring out his sides and becoming wings.

And now he is floating above the dragon, looking down on it as it flies up to meet him, shooting fire that accomplishes nothing, just makes his wings grow bigger, makes him float higher, and oh he can shoot the fire back, take bits of his wings and toss them, like an arrow directly into the dragons eye. He watches in mild fascination, dizzy, warm, burning up in the best way possible as the dragon writhes on the ground, lizard skin lit up and burning. 

Chanyeol doesn't quite like the smell of it, putrid and too strong, wafting through his protection and reaching his nose. It's getting colder now, the ground coming up to meet him, but that's okay because he's just had the most amazing experience, the most amazing feel. The voices screaming at him to do something were right, he'd done something right, and Baekhyun is alive, hovering over top of him and radiating some other kind of warmth, large scared eyes looking into his own blurry, glassy ones. 

The power of friendship cannot kill fire, but a phoenix can. 

\----------------------  
♔; lust; : have a very strong sexual desire for someone. Can occasionally be confused with love.   
\----------------------

It's Chanyeol who wakes up feeling heavy this time, eyelids pushing down with unimaginable weight and body feeling weirdly absent, a husk of life, drained of something, but he can't place what it is right now, arms betraying him and flopping back down when he tries to move. He's on something soft and warm though, a different kind of heat from the intense feverish burn that had trickled down his spine and into him. 

His eyes open, expecting bright light to hit them, but instead he's met with a ceiling, grey, dreary, dripping with water. He's confused, blinking a couple of times and turning over, only to find that he can't turn over, trapped by a pair of arms and a body. 

Chanyeol pushes himself up off the damp cave floor, trying to squint in the pitch black darkness, unable to see, the only sounds penetrating his still numb ears are the sounds of soft breathing. The arm securing him falls loosely to his waist when he sits up, and Chanyeol wants to lie back down, shivering with a kind of instant chill, reaching out for the body that he'd been using like a pillow and suddenly finding himself face to face with deep dark eyes that he knows well. 

"You're awake." Baekhyun says, and he sounds relieved, breathless from fear and voice husky with sleep, with a drowsiness caused not just by fatigue. Chanyeol blinks. "You're awake, thank God."

"You care?" Chanyeol asks, voice hushed, bewildered and timid. 

"Shut up." Baekhyun says, but his voice has no venom, sounds astonished and lovely, has that sultry tone that Chanyeol remembers, has wanted to hear again for so long. "You saved my life again."

"I did?" Chanyeol mutters, and he can't remember, just remember anger, and heat and floating, floating so nicely and feeling like drowning in the sky. 

"You saved my life even after I took advantage of you. Even after I-" Baekhyun looks almost choked up, eyes intense, teeth worrying his lip, and he grips the front of Chanyeol's charred and tattered robes, staring at him, into him. "You're a fucking phoenix. You're fucking amazing."

"A phoenix?" Chanyeol asks, perplexed, breathing shallowly, startled by Baekhyun's proximity, by the blue shimmering on his skin and flickering from Baekhyun's fingers onto his arms, cool and electrifying. 

"Yes. A phoenix. You just exploded. All of your faerin just bloomed and you rose and you set a dragon on fire, and I think I like you." Baekhyun is rambling, eyes looking glossy and far away, yet still burning into Chanyeol's scull. "I need to, we need to. Come with me."

Baekhyun leaps to his feet, nails digging into the flesh of Chanyeol's wrist as he tugs him up after him, and deeper into the murky tunnel. 

The last thing Chanyeol is expects is to be dragged to a quiet corner of the creepy tunnels, somewhere far off from the others. Private, dark, they're alone here, and that's exactly what Baekhyun is going for, pushing Chanyeol into the stony wall with a force Chanyeol didn't think the smaller Elf even possessed.

Baekhyun yanks him forwards off the wall by the front of his worn out robes, leaning up briefly on his toes to ghost his lips over Chanyeol's. It’s confusing, not the right time, and Chanyeol still needs answers, still needs an explanation as to why he can suddenly shift, as to why he can grow into flames and burst into the sky, but Baekhyun is looking at him with some kind of adoration, eyes confessing soft, and he loses his self control, sighing and giving in to something he knows he could never reject, even with every bit of snark and every bit of awful attitude.

"Want you." Baekhyun murmurs, and he's so close to Chanyeol, gazing up at him with glassy eyes, lips still stained a red from the fruit, and Chanyeol absently thinks that they'd look even better bitten and swollen. Baekhyun presses himself flush against Chanyeol, but keeps their lips just barely touching, and Chanyeol feels his next words more than he hears them. "Please Chanyeol."

Chanyeol wants nothing more than to close the distance between them, to claim Baekhyun's pretty mouth, to turn him around and take him right here on the rocky ground, but now isn't the right time, it's never the right time.

"We don't have the right stuff to do this properly." Chanyeol breathes out, afraid to speak too loud, afraid to break this moment.

"Don't care." Baekhyun says, and he kisses Chanyeol, chaste and quick. Just like the one he'd given him after he'd woken up in the moss. "You don't need to fuck me. Just, I Need something."

"Why is it that you only say please when you're desperate?" Chanyeol says, and it's clear he's just stalling at this point, teasing.

"I don't beg for just anyone." Baekhyun mutters darkly, and he doesn't seem to catch Chanyeol's joking tone, dropping down from where's been on the tips of his toes.

Chanyeol takes his chance, gripping Baekhyun's forearms and switching their positions, this time pushing Baekhyun to the wall, leaning down so that their foreheads touch.

"So why is it that you keep doing it for me then?" Chanyeol says quietly, and he grins. Baekhyun is visibly flustered, pink dusting his cheeks, lip caught between his teeth.

"It's not my fault you're so, so tall." Baekhyun blurts out, gritting his teeth and looking ashamed. "Even when I wanted to hate you oh my Lei you were so hot. But you’re also brave. And you tried, you tried even when I was shit, even when I was on the brink of death and no one else wanted to try."

Chanyeol laughs softly, and he feels a rush of confidence, leaning down to claim Baekhyun's mouth. They kiss slowly, like they have all night, all week, like they're not currently hiding in a murky corner of some creepy underground tunnel. 

"Tell me more." Chanyeol breathes when they part, and Baekhyun chases his lips, presses them together again and again, hands tangling in Chanyeol's hair and tugging him down slightly, as if telling him to stay, to continue. 

"Talk later." Baekhyun snaps, hands travelling from Chanyeol's hair and down his sides, settling gently at his waist, before curling fingers around his hips and digging in hard. "Just shut up and kiss me." 

Chanyeol does kiss him, gripping his arms and pinning him flat against the wall of the tunnel, not caring for the water dripping down them, leaving spots against Baekhyun's shirt. Chanyeol wastes no time deepening the kiss, catching Baekhyun’s tongue and sucking on it, eliciting the softest of moans from the smaller Elf, and it shoots a jolt of arousal through him. 

He almost wants to laugh at this situation. On the brink of death constantly, making their way to what is probably the end of the journey, and here he is with his tongue sweeping across the teeth of the prettiest boy with the ugliest attitude. Chanyeol grinds his hips down without warning, and he can feel everything through the thin material of their clothing, can feel Baekhyun’s erection drag against his, and Baekhyun moans loudly, causing Chanyeol to clamp a hand over his mouth warningly. He doesn’t stop his actions however, rolling his hips over and over, feeling Baekhyun pant into his hand. 

Baekhyun starts to lift his hips to meet Chanyeol’s, knees nearly giving out when Chanyeol pauses to shove a hand into Baekhyun’s trousers and stroke him roughly. Chanyeol’s other hand keeps him pinned to the wall, and he scrapes his teeth across Baekhyun’s Adam’s apple. Baekhyun bucks his hips and moans loudly again, and this time Chanyeol doesn’t bother to muffle him, dropping his cock and going back to grinding his hips, slowly, almost torturous.

“I like you, you know.” Baekhyun gasps out, holding onto Chanyeol’s shoulders for support, hands shaking and Chanyeol grunts in response, annoyed at the timing.

“Shut up Baekhyun.” He says, voice low and breathless, and for some reason that’s what does it, Baekhyun coming with stuttering hips and a whine that Chanyeol will dream about for a long time after, following him quickly with his own orgasm. 

They both stay like this for a bit, half leaning and half standing, and Chanyeol drops his head onto Baekhyun’s shoulder, not able to stop himself from placing a small kiss to his neck, one that makes Baekhyun shudder. 

“I like you too dumbass. I thought that was clear for a long time.” Chanyeol mutters, muffled by Baekhyun’s skin, and the Elf just laughs underneath him, a bitter, almost sarcastic one. 

“I was too focused on protecting myself to care how others thought of me.” Baekhyun says, snaking his arms around Chanyeol’s waist and pulling him closer, teeth nibbling gently on the tip of his ear. “I never really realized until last- or was it two?- something weeks ago. When you comforted me after the wolves came. I didn’t expect you to be so nice to someone like me. And then you saved me and I was so confused.”

Chanyeol pushes himself off the wall, feeling awkward and embarrassed realizing that they can’t bathe for a while. Or forever, his mind tries to tell him, but he bats the thoughts away, tries to keep a positive smile on his face. 

“Well you’re kind of a bitch you know.” He says cheerfully, grabbing Baekhyun’s hand and dragging him back to where the others are, some sleeping and some sitting against the wall. “But you’re also annoyingly cute, even when I’m trying to hate your attitude, so there’s that.”

“That’s … comforting.” Baekhyun mutters, but never gets the chance to finish because Yixing is waving at them wearily, raising an eyebrow at their interlocked fingers.

“Where were you guys?” He asks, eyes wide as they survey him, and Chanyeol feels Baekhyun stiffen beside him, reminding him that they’re not perfect yet, they still have a long way to go. 

“We needed to have a talk.” Baekhyun snaps before Chanyeol can speak, letting go of his hand and practically throwing himself onto the ground. Chanyeol just sighs, scrunching up his nose in frustration before dropping down beside Lu Han. The Gaelgorn Elf is fast asleep curled up on his side like a small child, holding a miniature Jongdae in his hands. The image would be cute if they were in any other place than this, but right now it only serves to make Chanyeol’s mood drop l, and he leans back against the cold, damp wall, closing his eyes, and breathing deeply. 

Yixing doesn’t say anything about the dragon, or Chanyeol, and he’s grateful for that, needs to figure out on his own why it happened, and who he really is. For now, he’ll sleep, curling up beside Baekhyun on the cave floor, ignoring the dampness of his bones and the twisting of his stomach. 

\--- 3 Hours north of Calladron ---

 

It's Lu Han who explains what happened to Chanyeol the next day, looking at him not with hungry astonishment and emotion like Baekhyun had, but with casual curiosity and logical understanding. 

"It was your faerin finally reaching it's true potential." Lu Han says, and he grabs Chanyeol's hand, drawing faint wisps of red from him. "See, you're drained right now. It's probably never been that strong, with the Heiðrún laws and all."

"So I've been a shifter my whole life without realizing it?" Chanyeol says, amazement seeping into his voice and he lifts his hand, shaking sparks of red from his fingertips.

"Exactly, and some kind of intense emotion triggered the transformation." Lu Han says, and his eyes flicker to Baekhyun for the briefest of moments before settling back on Chanyeol. His eyes are shining, glowing a dazzling gold and he smells strongly of honey today, the rich kind that makes mouths water. 

"I'm glad it did." Lu Han continues sincerely, and he smiles at Chanyeol, before turning serious, eyes losing their colour and euphoric honey smell disappearing, leaving a bitter taste on Chanyeol's tastebuds. "We'll be in Amfi by tomorrow."

"Who's going to be reading?" Chanyeol asks, and he knows Yixing wants to, knows the human has come with the only goal of sacrificing himself for Calladron, but maybe, maybe someone else can read or Chanyeol can. The healer has given up so much of himself, so much of his energy, quietly and without complaint. They wouldn't be alive, wouldn't here in this murky tunnel, waiting to walk forwards to their deaths. 

"I'll be doing it." Yixing says, walking over to where they're standing, and he doesn't look scared, doesn't look like what he wants to do could lead to his death. He looks calm, collected, everything a real man should be, and Chanyeol feels a surge of affection for the level-headed human. 

“You’ve done so much for us though.” Chanyeol says, frown on his lips, eyebrows furrowing. “You don’t deserve to take that risk.”

"It's what I came here to do." Yixing says with finality, and Chanyeol doesn't argue, just nods his head solemnly. 

They're leaving now, inching through the tunnels and pressing themselves against the filthy walls, trusting nothing, on edge for anything to attack, for the ceiling to cave in. Lu Han's faerin is flickering, growing weaker as they walk to save energy for what's to come, for holding off the Amphaerie. 

When they see the light at the end of the tunnel there's no happiness, there's no sighs of relief or smiles, just a hollow feeling in their guts. Chanyeol has seen the Amphaerie, if only in his mind, if only in the fleeting glimpses he catches in his dreams, in his nightmares, and it's enough, enough to have him hesitating at the exit, pushing down the contents of his stomach that threaten to surface. 

Baekhyun seems lost, staring forward but not really looking at anything, hands gripping Chanyeol loosely, and he doesn't know what the Elf is thinking, doesn't want to know. 

He has to focus. 

The mist is so thick here that it can't be called mist anymore, concentrated and dense, like the the smoke from a fire, even Lu Han's faerin doing nothing to help guide them, and they move slowly, crawling almost. 

No one dares to talk, eyes darting here and there, shallow breaths and some not breathing at all, Jongdae peeking out carefully from Lu Han's pocket with wide eyes and blowing hair. The ruins are massive, cracked pillars and ancient stone, and it would be beautiful on any other day, but right now they cling together, the thought of imminent death hanging over their heads. 

A bow cannot kill the Amphaerie, a phoenix cannot kill the Amphaerie, nothing can kill the Amphaerie aside from the fragile material in Yixing's shaking hands, the words that hold more power than anything else in Calladron. 

There's a temple in front of them, crumbling and decaying, roofless yet still intimidating, and it's here they have to enter, here they have to crawl through the cracks in the stone and deep underground, to where the Amphaerie call to their higher power, fall into deep trances and sing, sirens and melodies and the screaming of children. 

It's quiet. Too quiet, the air heavy, pushing down on their backs and blanketing them, so thick that no sound reaches them. Chanyeol remembers this feeling, remembers the mist this dense, no breathing, no heartbeats. Baekhyun takes Chanyeol's hand, melts into his side, and he could be crying, he could be screaming, but Chanyeol can't hear, can barely see, but Yixing is suddenly in front of him, pulling them both towards the rotting entrance that looks as if it might collapse at any second. 

Sound. 

Exploding back into their ears, unimaginable, terrifying screams that sound more like white noise, creeping across the ground and materializing in front of them. Tall beings, mystical in appearance, dark gleaming eyes and hollow gaping mouths, teeth shining through from the back. There are three of them, gazes locked on Chanyeol, recognizing him, knowing him. And he knows them too, knows them by name, shivers and steps backwards. 

That breaks the spell, and the one called Zitao raises it's hands, speaking words Chanyeol cannot understand, but Yixing understands them, and he leaps into action, pulling Chanyeol backwards and hissing into his ear. 

"Lu Han is going to distract them, keep them busy. He has something they want so they won't kill him. We wait until all their focus is on him and then we sneak into the crevice." He whispers to Chanyeol, and then grabs Baekhyun by the arm as well. "You. Follow whatever Chanyeol does."

They hang back, look terrified, sticking themselves against the wall and watching with a creeping feeling of dread crawling up their spines. Lu Han approaches the creatures, cradling Minseok in his arms and standing straight, tall, fearless. Chanyeol is proud of him, of the way Lu Han looks as if he's persuading another royal figure, as if he's speaking to Baekhyun in clipped formal tones. 

Lu Han begins to speak, voice carrying back to them, clear and concise, telling them to spare them, give them immortality, and Chanyeol isn't sure at first, isn't sure who the "them" Lu Han refers to is, until he remembers. Him and Baekhyun are Elves, him and Baekhyun are prime examples of who can be changed, gifted with the immortality, the powers of an Amphaerie. 

The Amphaerie are focused on Lu Han now, or rather they seem to be focused on Minseok, but it's enough, their greed for power letting them down as the one called Kai starts to speak, voice like melting chocolate and howling wolves. 

Yixing tugs on Chanyeol, mouth's "it's time" and then they're running, into the crevice, into the temple and underground. Chanyeol takes one last look before going in completely, freezing in terror and grief, hearing Lu Han's desperate, image of a fox writhing in the air imprinting into his mind. 

\------------------------------  
♔; sac•ri•fice; : an act of giving up something valued for the sake of something else regarded as more important or worthy.   
\------------------------------

They’re here. The part of the ruins where Hongbin had sat and spoke his spell, had lit the candles and called upon things other than Zafkra for his bidding. Chanyeol can see the fallen candles, wax cooled on the ground, can see the wolf hide laid out to sit on.

It's eerie, disconcerting and he doesn't like it, doesn't like being here, and he presses closer into Baekhyun, taking deep shuddering breaths. 

Yixing sits down carefully, takes his own shuddering breath, faltering before taking a piece of paper from somewhere, one Chanyeol has never seen and placing it on his knees. He smooths it out and looks it over, glancing back up at them. 

"This is it." He says quietly, and he reaches for each of their hands, drawing the slightest bit of red and blue from their skin. "I need to take as much faerin as I can get. This needs to be strong." 

Baekhyun pulls back suddenly, jerking his hand out of Yixing’s grip and fixing him with a hard stare. He begins to say something, stops, and starts again, and then stops, taking a deep measured breath, pointedly avoiding Chanyeol’s confused and frightened eyes.   
“I want to do it.” Baekhyun’s words tumble out quickly, but seriously. Yixing looks taken aback, opening his mouth to protest, still holding Chanyeol’s hand but not seeming to notice, entire being directed at Baekhyun. 

“No.” Chanyeol says sharply, glaring at Baekhyun as a kind of fury build in his chest, fiery and frantic. “I didn’t risk my fucking life for yours twice to have you throw yourself away.”

“Shut up Chanyeol.” Baekhyun snaps, and he’s still not looking at him, still staring straight ahead at Yixing, who drops Chanyeol’s hand and moves closer to Baekhyun. He leans in and scans him, large eyes trained right into Baekhyun’s own. 

“Are you sure about this Prince?” Comes Yixing’s reply, cautious, unique features lighting up with some kind of apprehension. “I don’t think we should.”

“I’ve done nothing but hold this entire operation back, the whole time.” Baekhyun says, and he doesn’t sound manipulative, he sounds sincere, real, ready. “I’ll accept my fate. I need to do something.”

“You’ve done a lot.” Yixing answers, and he doesn’t sound like he’s bullshitting, sounds truthful and earnest, speaking in his straightforward manner. “You’ve learned how to love, and to sacrifice, and you’ve helped others see who they truly can be.”

“I’m doing it.” Yixing says before Baekhyun can retort, before Chanyeol can make sense of his words. His voice is firm, inflexible, no one is going to be arguing with the fact, with fate, rearing it’s head and plucking Yixing along with it. “We don’t have time to be arguing about this. I fear lives have already been lost outside.”

Baekhyun struggles, tries to pull back from Yixing’s hands, from his iron grip, but the healer’s eyes flash dangerously, and he yanks Baekhyun forward, drawing faerin from him quickly, against his will. 

Chanyeol and Baekhyun's faerin blends together in Yixing's hands, creating an orb of swirling magenta, deep and beautiful. Chanyeol is entranced by it, eyes fixated on the colour, watching it bleed into Yixing's skin, paling and dancing, skittering up his arms and down his throat. 

Yixing is glowing now, filled to the brim with faerin, and it sticks to him like a film, causing his eyes to glow dark, burning and brilliant, fingertips dripping with it, like the blood of faeries. It would normally terrify Chanyeol, to see the soft healer blur and become sharp edges, breathing out ice blue puffs of air and looking as if he's the immortal being, magnificent and ethereal. 

He sits down on the wolf hide rug, lights the candles with a flick of his wrist, Chanyeol's borrowed faerin climbing the walls and lighting the cave like room up in flames for the most fleeting of moments, before it softens to a dull glow. Yixing turns back to them, and his voice comes out layered, whispering from his mouth in wisps of energy that curl into Chanyeol's hair, catching in his throat and constricting his lungs. 

"I need the parchment." Yixing orders, and his words fall from his mouth and crawl across the floor, Chanyeol scrambling to put the spell into his hands, taking a huge step back and breathing harshly, reaching blindly behind him for Baekhyun's hand. 

With how terrifying Yixing looks, how terrifying the over concentrated faerin feels in the air, with the mutated creatures from the depths of the Flux, the crevice of Hell, Chanyeol understands. 

Balance. Power. Things that should be, and things that should not be. One thing is for sure, the Amphaerie are things that should not be, and this Yixing, this unrecognizable figure speaking a chant that sounds like it's falling off the tongue of a demon, is also a thing that should not be. 

And Chanyeol is selfishly grateful, watching Yixing's body shudder, watching the faerin ignite the parchment and scream along the walls, watching the healer clutch his head, sounding like a vast entity. Chanyeol is so fucking grateful that it isn't Baekhyun imploding, dying from the inside out, and he turns next to him, sees Baekhyun eyes drowning, tears falling down his cheeks and shattering in the oversensitive air. 

Yixing's death is beautiful in a way, body rising to the ceiling and crashing back down again, the deafening cracks of bones breaking, the choked sound he makes as the faerin escapes, blood freezing in his veins and dripping to the floor, diluted and rainbow, delicate and exquisite. 

And then it's all over. Silence deafening once again, the candles going out with a shriek of wind, faerin hanging in the air heavily, and clinging to their shivering frames. 

"Is that it?" Baekhyun whispers, voice coming out choked, defeated, desperate, and Chanyeol just nods, sliding a hand down his side soothingly until he reaches Baekhyun's hand, intertwining their fingers. "Should we go outside?"

Chanyeol nods again, unable to speak, reaching a tentative hand up into the air and touching the hanging strands of faerin, deep blue and beautiful, cool to the touch but sending sparks through his veins. He pauses though, turns back towards the charred and burnt corpse now lying on the ground, kneels beside it, raising two fingers to his lips and pressing them to the ground. 

A thank you, not enough, but all he can do. A true sacrifice, the truest kind of honour, of duty, and of devotion. The hero that Calladron may not remember, but that Chanyeol will always hold close, always take the parts of thoughts, the bits of memory and cherish them. 

The parts of everyone, of the forest imps, of the lives lost back home, of the slayn dragon and of Yixing. Important, beautiful, things to be remembered even when the names disappear and the generations have passed. Those who gave up their lives, willingly or unwillingly. 

Only a bit more to go. 

 

☁

 

Gaelgorn code; : to use your passionate tongue, words dripping with honey and tainted with tragedy, to use the persuasiveness you naturally possess, is key. Do not back down, even when a sacrifice must be made for someone else. Cover weakness with lies.

☁

 

"I'm not here to destroy you like you've been led to believe. I will not harm you. I cannot harm you. We cannot harm you." 

Lu Han's voice does not waver, does not crack or lower in volume, and his eyes stay sharp, trained on the tallest Amphaerie, the one with the black cat eyes and robes that seem to be made of clouds, dark and thunderous, the deepest of indigos. The Amphaerie with the hair like sand smiles, showing all of it's teeth, long, jagged, gleaming. It speaks like silk, like smothering curtains and and rolling waves of blood, and the fox in Lu Han's arms, cowers into him, ears folding and eyes shut. 

"Prove it." 

"How can I do that?" Lu Han says, refraining from his urge to pace, hands only just beginning to tremble, but he holds himself still, steels his gaze and looks right into the Amphaerie's eyes, can feel the air start to crackle and burn around him, the pressure becoming unfathomable as the mist darkens, the fog grows heavier. He follows the rules, does not move, does not break eye contact, keeps his voice level, respectful, keeps his faerin hidden, dormant. 

"Give us the fox." They say in unison, and Lu Han can feel Jongdae stir from inside his pocket, gulps inwardly in fear, in horror. He has no choice, but he can try. He can try. 

"He is precious to me." Lu Han says, and his voice falters the slightest bit, just enough that the Amphaerie pick up on it, and the pressure deepens. His lungs feel smaller, shrinking, vision blurring and head growing dizzy. Lu Han sways but manages to right himself, stepping forward and breaking a rule. 

"Give us the fox." The voices repeat, and Lu Han is only somewhat aware of the sky darkening around them, of the ocean roaring in the distance and the pressure building. 

Lu Han takes another step forward, daring, taunting, and Jongdae punches him through his robes, but stays quiet, stays hidden. He will not back down, and he will keep them occupied, even if it causes his death. But Minseok is stirring in his arms, leaping down to the ground and growling at Lu Han, sitting at the Amphaerie's feet and looking up at them.

No one notices the others slip away, too focused on the fox seated primly on the ground, defiant and courageous, glancing back at Lu Han with twinkling eyes, blinking slowly. A silent goodbye. A sacrifice from the unlikeliest of creatures. 

Lu Han steps backwards, swallows thickly, but keeps his face impassive, keeps his hands from shaking and his knees from giving out, feels the pressure lessen and his lungs inflate, breathing deeply and slowly. 

The tallest Amphaerie waves it's hand, trails a claw across Minseok's ear and across his tail, raising it's arms to the sky once more, and along with it, Minseok. The fox floats, writhing as it's raised higher and higher, choking, screaming. Lu Han can hear Jongdae let out a cry, drowned out by Minseok's animalistic shrieking, but he keeps his eyes trained, doesn't blink, doesn't move, proves himself to the Amphaerie. 

They toy with Minseok, draw his death out, but the quiet Amphaerie with it's voice of warm milk orders them to a stop, holding Minseok by his tail and slashing his neck with one long, clawed finger. 

Lu Han will never forget the glassy eyes staring out, or the way the Minseok's entire body convulses with his last breath, will never forget the blood dripping from his neck or the sound he makes when he lands with a dull thump. 

"You have proved yourself." The Amphaerie say, unaffected, terrifying, swirling their robes and staring down at him, beauty flashing into something grotesque, dripping, awful. "The ritual will start now."

"The ritual will start now." They repeat, and Lu Han stays still, so still, praying, hoping, hopeless. 

But the ritual never starts because the ruins are suddenly crumbling around them, broken pillars falling and sky screaming, whistling like the wind through a tunnel. 

The Amphaerie are floating, writhing, thrashing in the air, faerin pouring from their bodies like an overturned teapot, the colour of sludge, thick and putrid. Lu Han scrambles backwards, falls to the ground and crawls on all fours, avoiding the torrent, avoiding the sticky feel in the air, back hitting the wall as he watches the Amphaerie burst as if being squeezed, and then he can't see again, can't breathe, can't think, bringing his knees to his chest and feeling warmth encase him. Jongdae is full sized, crackling with protective electricity and forming a barrier around them, sealing them off from the storm of faerin, from the shrill noise indescribable noise. Lu Han clings to him in a way he's never clung to anyone before, nails scraping down his arms in desperation as he fights off the pressure in his head, building and terrifying, sobs wracking his body. 

To stare into an Amphaerie's eyes means death, means lifeless floating existences, but Lu Han is alive, fighting down the feelings of sheer emotion he feels, thousands of years of history coursing through the air. 

And then it's gone. Silent, clear, bright sunlight filtering down, rays piercing through the black sparks and tendrils of shadow, landing on Jongdae and Lu Han. He tries to breathe, heaving and shaking. They sit there, wrapped in each other, a familiar position, comforting and real, and this time it's Jongdae's turn to speak calmly, to ease the unforeseen emotion pouring from Lu Han.

"We did it." Jongdae says quietly, and then he grins, pulling Lu Han to his feet and cupping his face, staring into his eyes with a strange kind of intensity. "We've lost so much, I've lost so much, you've lost so much, but Lu Han, they did it, we made it. Calladron is, it's safe."

Lu Han nods, staring back at the temple, watching the light hit it, light it up, listening to the waves of the ocean. Chanyeol and Baekhyun are there, clinging to each other like terrified cats, eyes wide and figures slumping, but Jongdae turns to them too, tears in his eyes and manic smile lighting up his kittenish features. 

"We can go home."

Epilogue

 

But what is home? What is home to Chanyeol, who's never felt at home anywhere in the first place? What is home to Lu Han, who has nothing but his people, ripped of his family? What is home to Baekhyun, who isn't the same, will never be the same as he once was?

They're questions to be answered later, thoughts to be dealt with not now, but in the future. 

"We'll figure it out." Baekhyun says when Chanyeol asks what they'll do, what they are and who they'll become.

"We'll figure it out." Lu Han mutters as he falls into the grass at the river bank, as he closes his eyes and tries not to let the images of the past flicker across his thoughts. But they do, and it's Lu Han who now has nightmares, it's all of them who are afraid to close their eyes, afraid to succumb to what they've experienced. 

The Calla is beautiful under the warm sunlight of summer, when the pale grass goes on for what seems to be miles, when they're not quivering in fear behind rocks, waiting for something to burst from the darkness and rob them of their breath. The river is beautiful too, strong current pulling it away where it will go. 

They still have a long way to go, still have to travel home, still have an entire Kingdom to rebuild, politics to be had, but for now, they rest, close together and blissful, high from relief, from the knowledge that they accomplished what they set out to do. 

It's Chanyeol who suggests the lanterns, five of them for each sacrificed life, for each person, be it sprite, imp, or human that died in the face of bravery. They light them, blue, gold, red, yellow, mixed together and glowing, beautiful and iridescent under the soft moonlight. 

They cry, hands clasped together and eyes shining, and Baekhyun holds Chanyeol's face gently, apologizes to him, apologizes to Lu Han, apologizes to the very air itself, climbing onto his lap and into his heart, lips soft and eyes softer, sharp around the edges but his. 

Baekhyun smirks, blooming into a full blown smile when Lu Han sits him down, tells him that he understands, spins an apology in a way only Lu Han can, cryptic and indirect, muttered words about honour, and about flowing streams of loyalty. 

Jongdae sits by himself, tears shining and falling down his cheeks as he whispers words into a lantern, placing it in the water and seeing it off. A goodbye that is bitter, but he's smiling, words like willows as he climbs back into Lu Han's pocket to sleep. 

And when Chanyeol takes a bite of Gaelgorn bread, rich and wonderful, the taste of honey feels like home.


End file.
